The Shattered Geass
by Roxius
Summary: AU. The sudden and violent murder of a female boxer named Kallen Stadtfeld sets in motion a series of events that will throw an entire city into turmoil, and Inspector Lamperouge and former death-row criminal C.C. become involved. Please Review!
1. Chapter 1

I do not own Code Geass.

Please check out my AMVs and 'Family Geass/Geass Guy' videos on Youtube, too! My name there is "Hikasu3445".

PLEASE REVIEW SO I CAN KNOW WHAT YOUR THOUGHTS ARE, AND SO I CAN GET IDEAS ON HOW TO IMPROVE!! IT'S VERY IMPORTANT!

Another AU Code Geass fic. This time, it's super serious stuff, more serious than the last thing. No yuri, either. Sorry...also, ages are different here, such as Lelouch is older than Suzaku.

* * *

_He ran down the dark corridor, not thinking of where it will lead..._

_As he runs, he feels something wet splash up against his pants..._

_He does not stop to see what it is, he just continues running as if his life depended on it..._

_At the end of the hall is a light, and that light is illuminating from within a door slightly cracked open..._

_He reaches the end of the corridor and places his hand on the doorknob; it was wet..._

_As he opens the door, the light flashes over him, and he realizes that the wet substance is actually blood..._

_Sitting in the middle of the room, dripping in fresh blood and staring up at the ceiling with a blink look on her face, was a young woman with long green hair..._

_She held a large blood-stained kitchen knife tightly in her right hand..._

_The mutilated corpses of her victims laid nearby, the acid from within their torn stomachs spilling out onto the bloody flooring..._

_He unsheathed a pistol from his belt, and aims it at the girl...and pulls the trigger..._

* * *

Lelouch Lamperouge, 23, let out a gasp and sat up in bed. He was shirtless, and sweat rolled down his skin as he breathed heavily. Glancing out the bedroom window, he saw that the moon was still high in the sky, glimmering like a lone candle in the darkness of the night. Beside him was a young woman, only in her early 20s and also devoid of clothing, and she was beginning to open her eyes; they were the color of honey, a beautiful glowing yellow.

Sitting up as well, the woman ran her hand down Lelouch's back and whispered, "...What's wrong?"

Lelouch forced a small grin and replied, his gaze still upon the moon, "Oh...it's nothing. I was just dreaming about how we first met..."

The woman smiled in an innocent manner. "...Ah, yes, I remember that too. There was alot of blood, wasn't there?"

Lelouch nodded. "Mmh..."

"Go back to sleep..." the woman whispered before curling up once again under the covers and drifting off. For a while, Lelouch still sat awake, the woman's soft breathing the only sound telling him he was still alive, and not a ghost as he has felt so many times lately in his life.

'Sometimes...I'm afraid I'm going to go insane...'

Lelouch glanced at the bedside table, and stared at the alarm clock. It was only 4:14 a.m. Also on the small table was his wallet and Desert Eagle Mark XIX pistol. Lelouch opened his wallet and stared at the detective's badge that was held inside.

In gold lettering was the words 'Inspector Lelouch Lamperouge'.

Sighing, Lelouch laid down, closed his eyes and was about to fall back into a deep slumber...when the phone rang.

Snatching up the receiver, Lelouch held it up to his ear and grunted, "...Yeah?"

"...It seems there's been a murder...can you and C.C. head over there and check it out? We're sending two of our cops over there right now to meet up with you..."

Lelouch looked over at the green-haired woman. "...Sure. Where do we gotta go?"

"Here's the address..."

* * *

It had been around 4:00 a.m. when the local police station received the call regarding the murder. A young woman, Kallen Stadtfeld, had been found dead in her apartment, a pool of blood around her lifeless body. She had been stabbed five times in the chest and face, as well as shot three times, once in the right leg, once in the left leg, and then the final shot was through her forehead. No culprit or suspect was seen fleeing the scene of the crime at any point before the murder was discovered.

Normally, cases like these were definitely not something that any police officer would be happy about, but one of their newest recruits was especially overjoyed that he had been chosen to check out the murder scene.

"Oh yeah! This is awesome! My first real murder investigation!!" Police Officer Suzaku Kururugi exclaimed, his eyes twinkling with excitement. He had always dreamed of being a police officer and protecting the weak, and after passing the exams and proving himself worthy of the title, he had gotten the job. However, up until now, Suzaku had been forced to do nothing but desk work, so he was glad to finally be given the opportunity to be a real cop.

Suddenly, before Suzaku could rush out to the car, a tall man with slightly-curly blue hair reached out and grabbed him by the back of the collar. This man was named Officer Jeremiah Gottwald, and he was Suzaku's mentor of sorts. Unfortunately, he wasn't exactly very fond of Kururugi. Pulling Suzaku close, Jeremiah leaned down and hissed in his ear, "Listen, kid...stop making a damn scene and get in the car without another word passing through those flapping gums of yours, got it? This isn't something you should be so excited about..."

"I'm...I'm sorry..." Suzaku apologized.

"Just...quit being so immature..." Jeremiah muttered, and he let go of Suzaku by pushing him. Taking one last sad glance at Jeremiah, who left to go to the bathroom before heading out, Suzaku sighed and dragged his feet all the way out into the parking lot. Unlocking the car door, Suzaku climbed into the driver's seat, and stared at the large, glimmering moon that hung high above them in the dark skies. It reminded him of a giant eye, looking down upon the world and watching its progress with interest.

"Start the car,"

Suzaku gasped and looked to his right; Jeremiah was already in the car, smoking a cigarette with a glazed look in his eyes.

'I didn't even hear him open the door...'

"Well? Start up the car!!" Jeremiah snapped, his patience growing thin.

A little frightened by his supervisor's sudden snapping, Suzaku quickly shoved the key into the ignition and turned it several times. Soon, the car's engine came to life, and after backing up, they drove out onto the main road and headed off to the left, following the directions they had received to reach the house of Kallen Stadtfeld.

As Suzaku drove onto the highway, Jeremiah pulled out a folder he had been given before leaving the station. It held all personal data regarding Kallen Stadtfeld, and it could aid in discovering the killer or other possible information that may prove why Kallen was murdered in such a violent manner. Jeremiah pulled the cigarette out from between his lips, rolled down the window, and tossed it out without a care.

"...So what does it say about her?" Suzaku asked, wanting to be as involved with the investigation as possible.

Jeremiah's eyes moved almost at light-speed as he scanned over the many files held within the folder. "She was 24 years old, Blood Type: A. It also seems that she had a job as a boxer," he said matter-of-factly, "She's been in 20 matches, and has won 16 of them. In fact, her 16th win had been yesterday, the day before she was murdered..."

"Do you think that the person she won against in that match is responsible for killing her? Or maybe he hired someone...?" Suzaku commented.

Jeremiah shook his head. "Unless they were fuckin' extremely obsessed about winning, then I doubt it. Losing in the kinds of matches she fought in didn't even do much harm anyway; there weren't any huge risks, just missing out on getting about 100 dollars worth of winning money. I recognize a few boxers on this list of people she had beat; they still have huge fanbases despite their loses. I doubt any of them would go as far as murder over something like that...at least, I hope so..."

Suzaku thought it over, and bit his lip. "Then...who do you think did it?"

Jeremiah shrugged. "We'll need to check out her house for evidence first..."

Both Suzaku and Jeremiah remained silent for the rest of the drive...

--

--

--

When they finally reached the Stadtfeld residence, Suzaku was surprised to see another car already parked in front of the house.

A grim look suddenly befell Jeremiah. "It looks like THEY'RE here..." he muttered as he unbuckled his seatbelt.

"Who?! Who?!" Suzaku asked, a bit frightened and confused on what was going on.

After parking up behind the car, Suzaku and Jeremiah climbed out and walked up onto the front lawn. A tall young man with sleek black hair, wide purple eyes and wearing a large light-brown coat was smirking at their presence, and beside him was a beautiful woman with long green hair that seemed to shimmer in the moonlight. Oddly enough, she was wearing a straitjacket. Her eyes seemed devoid of emotion.

"Well, well...so they decided to send me Orange-kun and his newest little lackey, huh?" the black-haired man chided in a mocking tone.

The green-haired woman said nothing.

"Shut it, Lelouch. I'm not in the mood for this," Jeremiah snarled.

"Come on, Orange-kun, cheer it up! It's been a while since we last saw each other!" The man named Lelouch joked.

Jeremiah rolled his eyes and commented, "...You're really tired, aren't you?"

Laughing in a rather foolish way, Lelouch replied, "Yes! Yes, I am!" Immediately after that, though, his expression hardened, and he suddenly became very serious.

"Who's that little monkey with the dumb look on his face standing next to you...?" Lelouch asked.

Taking a step forward, Suzaku exclaimed, "My name is Suzaku Kururugi, and I am a police officer!!"

"...Never would have guessed..." mumbled the green-haired woman with a tiny smirk.

Clenching his fists, Suzaku gave both Lelouch and the green-haired woman a nasty glare, and then whispered to Jeremiah, "...Just who are these freaks?"

"These 'freaks'," Jeremiah explained, "Are our police force's most prized and decorated officers: Inspector Lelouch Lamperouge and his assistant, C.C.!"

"...C.C.?"

"Yes. Her name is C.C..."

"You know," Lelouch suddenly spoke up; he had been listening in on their little conversation, "C.C. and I...well, we don't really consider ourselves as 'inspector and assistant'...more like 'master and pet' in a way..."

The woman named C.C. nodded in agreement.

"Why not?" Suzaku asked.

"Well..." Lelouch smirked, "Because, I'm responsible for her, and make sure she doesn't try to commit murder again...she WAS a death-row criminal, after all..."

"I see," Suzaku stared at the ground for a moment...and then he cried, "WAIT, WHAT?!!"

Placing a stern hand on Suzaku's shoulder, Jeremiah said, "We'll explain it to you during the investigation. Let's just go and get this over already..."

Suzaku couldn't believe it. Staring at C.C., he thought, 'Such a cute, innocent-looking girl like her...A DEATH-ROW CRIMINAL?!!'

Poor Suzaku was beginning to regret ever taking up this profession in the first place...


	2. Chapter 2

Disclaimer: I do not own Code Geass.

Please check out my AMVs and 'Family Geass/Geass Guy' videos on Youtube, too! My name there is "Hikasu3445".

I think the reason I don't watch the anime is because, I can't really stand anime. I think it takes too long and gets boring at times, so I'm more of a manga/novel person. That's why I bought the first two volumes of the manga and the first volume of the novel series to give me some more info.

HAPPY HOLIDAYS, EVERYONE!!!!

A/N: There IS a reason why Lelouch is so comfortable talking about sex to strangers...it'll be explained near the end.

* * *

As Jeremiah was busy at work with unlocking the front door of the Stadtfeld residence, Suzaku looked around and realized...they were the only ones here. Not even an ambulance had shown up yet.

"...Where is everyone else?" Suzaku asked aloud.

"Whenever C.C. and I are called in to investigate a crime scene," Lelouch explained, his back facing towards Suzaku, "We, along with two or three specialized officers, perform an intial sweep of the area, in hopes to find any evidence or clues that could be missed AFTER the body is removed..."

A shiver crawled up Suzaku's spine. "S-So...Kallen Stadtfeld's body will still be inside?"

Lelouch nodded. The darkness surrounding them was beginning to fade; it would be morning soon.

"It's open," Jeremiah announced as he walked back over to the group, "Let's go in and get this damn thing over with..."

The moment Suzaku stepped into the house, he was overwhelmed by a strong odor.

"Ugh!! What is that stench...?!" he exclaimed, pinching his nose in disgust.

"Could be the body, could be something else. In any case, that's one of the things we'll have to find out..." Lelouch spoke up.

It was a 2-floor house, with the kitchen and living room on the 1st floor, and the bedroom and workroom were on the 2ndfloor. A spiraling staircase near the front of the house lead up to the second floor. Everything was white and fresh, as if it had just recently been cleaned. A large glass chandelier hung high above on the ceiling, and Suzaku stared at it for a moment, wondering if it would suddenly crash down on top of them.

"Suzaku!! Stop standing there like an idiot and come on!"

Suzaku snapped out of his daze and turned his attention to Officer Jeremiah, who was glaring back at him with annoyance.

As the four of them slowly and cautiously walked down the first hallway, Lelouch began to speak, and no one bothered to stop him.

"I met C.C. about 2 years ago. It was my first case as a detective, and it was to locate the criminal responsible for the murders of 15 young people throughout the city..."

Suzaku gulped, and glanced at C.C., who remained as calm and emotionless as ever.

"Eventually, I was able to catch the criminal in the act, just after she had killed her 16th and 17th victims. I'll never forget that day; seeing C.C. sitting on her knees in a puddle of blood, staring up at the ceiling as if God himself was coming down to smite her for all of her evil deeds. Clenched tightly in her hands was a large blood-stained kitchen knife...the murder weapon. I felt the bile rise in my throat when I saw the two dead corpses lying nearby, their bellies cut open and the stomach acid pouring out. I didn't allow myself to hesitate any longer, however; I took out my pistol, and shot her right in the head..."

A small smirk formed on Jeremiah's lips, as if he was hearing an old funny childhood story for the hundredth time.

"Surprisingly enough, she survived, and was soon placed on death row for her crimes, which were easily proved by the court. I was assigned to interrogate her and learn why she committed such horrible murders, although there wasn't much point considering she would be executed soon anyway. When I tried to speak with her, she just stayed quiet, never said a word. I even tried threatening her with a pocket knife, and I ended up cutting myself by accident. When that happened, something both mesmerized and disturbing happened; she grabbed my wrist, where I had cut myself, and began licking the blood away as it dribbled out. I wasn't sure whether to be turned on or scared out of my mind, but she wouldn't let me go...and then she spoke..."

Suzaku noticed that the odor was gone now.

"She told me that my blood tastes like crap. I could tell she was trying to be humorous, but obviously this was not a situation that any normal person would laugh in. Then, she said that I probably haven't had much of a sex life, because my blood would've tasted a whole better if I did. What bothered me most at that moment wasn't the fact that she just drank my blood, but that she was totally right about my sex life being practically non-existent..."

They entered the kitchen; nothing was found to be out of place. After walking around the area for a moment, they headed back to the stairs to check out the second floor.

"She was even able to tell my age, blood type and birthdate simply from tasting my blood. She also told me that she could compare people by the taste of blood, allowing her to figure out if they have had a sexual experience with one another before. It was the most amazing thing I had ever witnessed. I told my superiors about it, and at first they didn't believe I word I said. They thought I might have been seduced by the murderer and told to say these things on her behalf. When I finally proved it to them, however, a grave suggestion was brought up: to use this girl's power to aid the police force and detective agency. It took a long time, about four months, but eventually it was decided to use the girl. However, since I was the one who discovered her ability, I would be the one responsible for her, and now we live together, and she remains at my side almost 24-7. In the long run, we even became lovers in the process, since we really had nothing better to do...she even has me call her C.C. now instead of her real name..."

Suzaku was overwhelmed with this entire story, but there was one thing he still wondered. "What if...C.C. murders someone again?"

"Isn't it obvious? I'll have to kill her if it happens again," Lelouch replied as if it was the simplest thing in the world.

Suzaku was horrified. "Y-You're really kill her? Even if you guys are...lovers?!"

"Of course! She IS a mass murderer, after all!" Lelouch snapped, "The truth is, working with me on murder cases is basically just a way for her to prolong her execution date...she wouldn't mind be killed by me. Hell, she'd probably rather be killed by me than anyone else!!"

Suzaku glanced to C.C., hoping she would interject, but the green-haired beauty remained silent.

Suddenly, Jeremiah let out a chuckle, and remarked, "Damn it, Lelouch...you always tell shitty stories..."

"Too bad that it WASN'T just a story..." Lelouch replied with a smirk.

'This guys are a bunch of cynical jackasses!!' Suzaku thought nervously, a sweat drop rolling down the side of his face.

The group slowly climbed the staircase and turned right down the upper hallway. It looked exactly like every other hallway they had come across in the house, although it became apparent that the smell Suzaku noticed earlier was becoming stronger.

"Whatever that rancid stench is coming from...it's up on this floor somewhere," Suzaku said, his voice so low it was barely audible.

There were four rooms on the upper floor: Kallen's bedroom, a computer room, a guest bedroom, and a small gym-like room for boxing practice.

"...I wonder where her body is?" Suzaku asked himself aloud as he peeked into the boxing room, only to find nothing there.

"Don't worry," Jeremiah told him, "We'll find it soon enough...whether we want to or not..."

Suddenly, Lelouch, who was glancing into Kallen's bedroom, raised his hand and beckoned the others over. "...I found it..."


	3. Chapter 3

Disclaimer: I do not own Code Geass.

Please check out my AMVs and 'Family Geass/Geass Guy' videos on Youtube, too! My name there is "Hikasu3445".

I think the reason I don't watch the anime is because, I can't really stand anime. I think it takes too long and gets boring at times, so I'm more of a manga/novel person. That's why I bought the first two volumes of the manga and the first volume of the novel series to give me some more info.

I know in some reviews people say that Suzaku is being too whiny and everything, but he's going to become more serious, and maybe even a little paranoid and crazy later on...

And, yes, this is OVER-THE-TOP OOC.

* * *

A wave of nausea crashed over Suzaku the moment he caught sight of Kallen Stadtfeld's corpse.

She was hanging from the ceiling, her body dangling about a foot over her bed, a long piece of rope tied tightly around her neck. Her entire body was drenched in her own blood, and it still continued to drip from the millions of small cuts and holes that covered her skin. Her stomach was sliced open, her breasts had been torn off, and her right eye had been gouged out. A large metal rod was sticking halfway into her vagina, and blood had even been splattered onto the walls.

Covering his mouth with his hand, Suzaku slowly backed away, and bumped into Jeremiah by mistake.

"...If you can't handle it, kid, then maybe you should just be a damn paper-pusher instead..." Jeremiah grunted, pushing Suzaku aside with his expression filled of extreme dislike towards his apprentice of sorts.

'Damn it...I really need to shape up...I can't have Officer Jeremiah thinking badly of me,' Suzaku thought, his body still shaking violently from what he had just seen, 'But...it's so hard to change...I was born this way, dammit! Argh...what kind of police officer am I, anyway?'

"...You're a poor excuse for a police officer," mumbled C.C. as she passed by him.

Suzaku gasped. 'Can she...read my mind?'

Meanwhile, in the room where the murder had been committed, Lelouch was looking over Kallen's body, his ever-moving eyes running up and down her mutilated corpse with lightning speed. C.C. stood with her back up against the wall, watching him.

"...I apologize for pointing out the obvious," Lelouch spoke up after about a minute, "But it appears that she has been tortured rather severely before death..."

"How was she killed?" Jeremiah asked, wondering just which part of the many violations done to this poor girl had actually done her in.

Lelouch thought for a moment. "...I can't say. There are so many possibilities, including a heart attack from the overwhelming pain, that I can't be sure. It depends on whether all of these injuries were made AFTER or BEFORE the death..."

Glancing over at C.C., Lelouch motioned for her to come over. He then leaned close and whispered into her ear, "...Do it..."

C.C. nodded, and walked up to the foot of the bed, where blood was still dripping off. She kneeled down and, closing her eyes, licked up some of the blood with her tongue, in the same kind of fashion as a dog. Suzaku, who had finally gotten his stomach to settle down, stepped into the room, but the moment he saw what C.C. was doing, he quickly ran off again in disgust.

Licking her lips, C.C. stood up and turned back to Lelouch. "She tastes...like a whore..." she explained in a monotone voice.

"Really?" Lelouch replied, a bit surprised.

Rolling around a droplet of blood on the tip of her tongue, C.C. tried to think of how to explain it properly. "I mean...she has several different tastes in her blood...that could mean she's either being doing several types of drugs at once before death, or she's had sex with ALOT of people in her life..."

'How the hell can she tell all of that...?' Jeremiah wondered as he watched on in silence.

"Hmm...I taste something else as well..."

"...What is it?"

"...I'm not sure...I've never tasted this before..."

Lelouch sighed. "Well...what information can we get, anyway?"

"She was raped along with being tortured, and she did die of a heart attack...all of these injuries were dealt to her body afterwards..." C.C. explained.

Lelouch nodded, and then turned his attention to Jeremiah. "What are you waiting for, man?" he snapped, "Write this down! Now!!"

"Ahh...sorry..." Pulling out his notepad, Jeremiah quickly scribbled down everything C.C. had told them so far.

Lelouch walked over to one of the drawers near the bed, and stared at the picture frames that had been set on top. Picking up one of them, he saw it was a photo of a young man, extremely tall and youthful-looking, with blond hair, and he was smiling widely at the camera. He was hugging Kallen tightly, and they seemed to possibly be lovers.

"This man...he might be a likely suspect..."

Lelouch tossed the frame to Jeremiah, who caught it clumsily. "Find out who that man is," Lelouch ordered, "As fast as you can!!"

* * *

'Ugh...where's the damn bathroom? I think I'm gonna puke...' Suzaku thought as he dragged himself down the hallway. He had already gone and abandoned his post, but that was the least of his worries at the moment.

'That chick C.C. is a fuckin' psychopath...they all are! That Investigator Lamperouge...Officer Jeremiah...a bunch of fucking freaks...but that's just how they are, I suppose...'

Suddenly, as he was walking, he felt the bile rise in his throat again, and he quickly ran into the first room he came across. However, what he found made him completely lose his need to puke. The room was Kallen's exercising area, and, drawn in a red substance on the wall in front of him...was a symbol.

The words 'ZERO' and 'GEASS' were written underneath in the same crimson liquid.

'Oh...oh my god...'

Suzaku took a step forward, to get a better look, when he realized he had stepped on something. It was a note, and oddly enough, it was completely devoid of any markings of blood. Without even thinking properly, he opened the letter, and saw that only three words were written in black ink:

'EUPHEMIA IS NEXT.'

Suzaku's eyes widened. 'E...Euphie?'


	4. Chapter 4

Disclaimer: I do not own Code Geass.

Please check out my AMVs and 'Family Geass/Geass Guy' videos on Youtube, too! My name there is "Hikasu3445".

I think the reason I don't watch the animeis because, I can't really stand anime. I think it takes too long and gets boring at times, so I'm more of a manga/novel person. That's why I bought the first two volumes of the manga and the first volume of the novel series to give me some more info.

I know in some reviews people say that Suzaku is being too whiny and everything, but he's going to become more serious, and maybe even a little paranoid and crazy later on...

And, yes, this is OVER-THE-TOP OOC.

* * *

'Euphie...? My...my darling little Euphie?' Suzaku thought, falling to his knees as he continued to stare at the letter, 'How does...how does this murderer, whoever he or she is, know about Euphie? Why the hell is he going to...going to...OH MY GOD, HE'S GOING TO KILL HER!!!'

Rushing out of the room, Suzaku quickly ran back to the crime scene, where Jeremiah had just gotten off the radio with the police station.

"We've got a match. Gino Weinberg, 26, a part-time employee at a local computer store. I'm going to go pick him up now for questioning..." Jeremiah began to head for the door, but Suzaku quickly jumped into his path.

"Suzaku, get out of my way!!" Jeremiah ordered, but Suzaku didn't budge.

"Sir, please, listen!! I...Euphemia...she's...she's going to be killed!!" Suzaku cried.

"What're you talking about, you idiot?!!"

Suzaku handed Jeremiah the letter and exclaimed, "I need to get back to my house as soon as possible!! She's my fiancee, for crying out loud!! I have to save her!!!"

Jeremiah just continued to stare at the letter. "...Where did you find this?"

"In Kallen's exercising room, but that's not important right now!! We have to-"

"Hold on for a minute..." Walking past Suzaku, Jeremiah headed down the hallway and looked into the exercising room.

A moment later, he returned. "Inspector Lamperouge...you should check this out..."

"There's no time, dammit!! I need to make sure that Euphemia is alright!" Suzaku exclaimed.

"SHUT UP, YOU FUCKIN' BRAT!!! YOU'RE A GODDAMN POLICE OFFICER, NOT A CHILD!!! WE HAVE A JOB TO DO, AND WE DON'T EVEN KNOW IF THESE THREATS ARE EVEN VALID!!! DON'T JUMP TO ASSUMPTIONS LIKE THIS!!!" Jeremiah snapped, his voice full of rage.

Suzaku shrunk back, but his determination was still set; he couldn't let Euphemia die, no matter what!

'She was the first woman who ever actually listened to me, who understood my feelings...the woman who cares about me so much that she agreed to marry me...I love her so much, and I'd never want anything bad to happen to her...THAT'S WHY I HAVE TO SAVE HER, NOW!'

Seeing Suzaku was in distress, Lelouch turned to Jeremiah and said, "Officer Jeremiah, how about this: I will drive Suzaku back to his home so he can check on his wife, and you can go and apprehend Mr. Weinberg..."

"B-But...but the symbol...and the words written on the wall in blood..."

"I will check that first. I believe we have obtained all information we can at this point, anyway."

Jeremiah clenched his fists, and sweat ran down his face. He opened his mouth to speak, but no words would come. 'We shouldn't be doing this...we don't even know what to expect from this murderer, whoever the hell they are...'

"Suzaku...please wait by my car," Lelouch told the younger police officer, "I'll be down in a minute or two..."

"T-Thank you...thank you so much...Inspector Lamperouge..." Suzaku breathed before rushing down the stairs as quickly as his shaking, weak legs could carry him.

Taking in a deep breath of air, Jeremiah stared at Lelouch's back as he headed for the doorway and asked, "Inspector Lamperouge...what do you think about this, though? Is Officer Suzaku's wife truly in danger? Shouldn't we both go to interrogate the suspect?"

Lelouch stood still for a moment, as if time had frozen. Then, he nodded his head. "Yes...I believe that everyone is in danger now...including you, Officer Jeremiah..."

Jeremiah was speechless once again.

"Besides," Lelouch continued, looking over his shoulder and smiling cheerfully, "Someone as experienced as you should have no trouble breaking down such a normal, unassuming man as Gino Weinberg...correct?"

Jeremiah thought that his lungs were on fire. 'Why...why is it so difficult to breath all of the sudden?'

Lelouch's smirk remained even as he calmly trotted down the hall and walked into the exercising room, examining the same scene that Suzaku and Jeremiah had come across. After about three minutes, Lelouch stepped out of the room and made his way towards the stairs.

"...Is everything alright? Did you learn anything?" Jeremiah asked nervously.

Lelouch nodded his head ever so slightly. "Yes...I have come to the possible conclusion that this murderer is deluded by his own beliefs, and thinks of himself as a superior being disguised as a human. He seems to go under the name 'Zero'...or possibly 'Geass', I am not sure. Either way, one is his name, and the other is the 'power' he uses to murder his victims...although, obviously, this psychotic criminal has no real power, and has only made himself think that he does."

"You...you got all of that just from a simple glance?" Jeremiah asked in astonishment.

"Well, there is also a chance that the murderer is just truly insane, and wrote those words out of insanity, with no possible clues behind them whatsoever. Maybe as a way to throw us off track, to try and get us to attempt to figure out the meanings of these words, when there are none, and he will just keep killing while we sit around, scratching our heads and sucking our thumbs..."

Jeremiah chuckled a bit under his breath. "Inspector Lamperouge...you are quite an impressive man, thinking up all of these theories in such a short time...you are truly one of the more intelligent minds in the police force..."

Lelouch chuckled as well, and rubbed the back of his head in a sheepish manner. "Aww, shucks," he said jokingly, "Now I'm getting all embarrassed...heh heh..."

Suddenly, the sounds of wailing sirens filled the air.

"Ahh...finally, the ambulance is here to take the body," Jeremiah said, letting out a sigh of relief, "Took those bastards long enough..."

Glancing at his watch, Lelouch gave a quick wave and exclaimed, "Well then...good luck, Officer Jeremiah..."

Jeremiah grinned. "You too...Inspector Lamperouge..."

As the two men headed downstairs, they were confronted by another group of officers and a doctor who had arrived on the scene.

After quickly explaining the situation to them, they both climbed into their cars and went their separate ways, Jeremiah to the home of Gino Weinberg and Lelouch to take Suzaku back to his house to check on his wife. However, one grave mistake had been made, and it seemed to have gone unnoticed somehow.

During all of the commotion caused by Suzaku, C.C. had disappeared...and she had somehow stolen Suzaku's pistol as well, even though its holding case was on his belt...


	5. Chapter 5

I do not own Code Geass.

Please check out my AMVs and 'Family Geass/Geass Guy' videos on Youtube, too! My name there is "Hikasu3445".

PLEASE REVIEW SO I CAN KNOW WHAT YOUR THOUGHTS ARE, AND SO I CAN GET IDEAS ON HOW TO IMPROVE!! IT'S VERY IMPORTANT!

I actually feel kind of bad for what I've done to Suzaku in this fic, and for what I'm GOING to do to the poor guy...

Main inspiration for this chapter: 'How To Save A Life', although no one is going to be SAVED, unfortunately...

* * *

Suzaku stared down at his own two feet in silence as Lelouch drove the car onto the highway. Lelouch glanced every now and then at the young police officer, who seemed almost lost in his own thoughts. He seemed so pitiful, so sad, so broken...almost like a little puppy who had just been abandoned.

"Suzaku..." Lelouch spoke up, hoping to coax the younger man to speak, but all he got in response was silence. For some reason, ever since Lelouch had gotten into the car, Suzaku had been strangely quiet, despite the fact his wife's life was possibly in danger.

After about three minutes of silent driving, Suzaku said, "Turn off here..."

"What?"

"We're getting closer to my house...turn off onto this road," Suzaku explained, pointing at an upcoming turn-off road. Lelouch nodded and turned on the car's right signal, and then slowed down enough to get off onto the new road. Suzaku twitched slightly as Lelouch began to pick up speed once again. Soon, they were passing rows upon rows of houses, shrouded in the foliage and trees.

"...Lelouch..."

"...Yes?"

Suzaku took in a deep breath. "I'm afraid...I'm afraid that she'll already be gone by the time we get there..."

"Don't talk like that, Suzaku," Lelouch snapped, although his voice remained calm, "If you think like that, then nothing but misery will come to you. We don't even know if the murderer is just bluffing or not. Keep positive, or you'll just fail in the end..."

Suzaku forced a small grin. "T...Thanks, Inspector Lamperouge...you're right...I need to keep positive..."

Lelouch smiled and replied, "...You can just call me 'Lelouch',"

"Yes...L-Lelouch..."

Turning his gaze back on the road, Lelouch closed his eyes for a moment and sighed.

They had almost reached the street when Suzaku pointed at a small house to the left with a red roof. "That's my place...we're here..."

Lelouch pulled into the driveway and parked the car. Reaching into his back-pocket, he slowly unsheathed his pistol. "Just in case..."

Suzaku nodded, and reached down to grab his pistol, but realized it was gone. "Oh, shit...this isn't good...I...I lost it..."

"Never mind that right now!!" Lelouch stuck his hand underneath his seat and pulled out a small gray handgun, "Here, just use my spare gun!! Let's get this over with already!!!"

Suzaku whispered a small 'thank you' and took the pistol. Climbing out of the car, the two men began to inch towards the house. The lights were off, and the garage was closed. The front door was even still locked, and Suzaku quickly fished his house keys out of his pocket and unlocked the door.

"Everything seems fine..." Suzaku muttered as he entered the house, "I guess Euphie's still just sleeping..."

Lelouch nodded and patted Suzaku on the back. "You see, my friend, there was nothing to worry about after all..."

Suzaku stepped into the living room, and groped around in the darkness for the light switch. When he finally found it, he flipped it and glanced down at the floor...and saw that he was standing in a puddle of blood.

"W...W...What the fuck is this...?"

Lelouch stood within the doorway of the living room, staring at the middle of the floor with an empty look on his face. He didn't even say a word. He couldn't bring himself to speak now.

Suzaku looked to see what Lelouch was staring at, and he immediately saw it...a letter, drenched in fresh blood. It had a menacing presence, calling out to him, mocking him...laughing at his pain.

'Oh god...oh god...oh god...no, not this...this is what I had feared...why...why is this happening...Euphie...Euphie...Euphie...EUPHIE!!!!'

Tears now flowing from his eyes, Suzaku slowly stepped towards the letter. Bending down, he lifted it into his pale, shaking hands, and began to open it. His own hands had become stained with the blood, but he could have cared less about that. Inside the letter was a small note, and a single sentence had been written on it:

'COME TO THE DOCKS IF YOU WISH TO RETRIEVE YOUR WHORE.'

Suzaku gritted his teeth, and tears dripped off the bridge of his nose and onto the note. "...She...is not...a whore...she's not a whore...she's not..."

"Suzaku..." Lelouch held out his hand and took a step forward, but then Suzaku stood straight. For a moment, he seemed considerably taller all of the sudden. Tears continued to pour down Suzaku's cheeks as he spoke to himself in a tone that slowly grew more and more infuriated.

"Euphie...she understood me and loved me more than my own parents ever did...she cares about me, and I care about her...she's the woman I love, and the only woman I'll ever love...and...and someone's trying to take her away from me..."

Lelouch saw a manical grin form on Suzaku's lips for almost a moment, but then it was gone.

Turning to face Lelouch, Suzaku wasn't weeping anymore; his face was full of determination, and his eyes seemed dilated. He clenched his fists so tightly that they began to draw blood.

"Lelouch..." he breathed, "We need to go to the docks...I need to save Euphie..."

"Suzaku...this is most definitely a trap-"

"I DON'T GIVE A GODDAMN FUCK IF IT'S A TRAP!!!" Suzaku screamed, swinging his arms about wildly, "I **_WILL_**SAVE EUPHIE, BUT I CAN'T DO IT WITHOUT YOU, LELOUCH!!!"

Lelouch was silent for a moment as he contemplated the situation. Finally, after a minute, he smirked and replied, "Alright...let's go, Suzaku..."

* * *

Officer Jeremiah glanced out the window and stared at the set of numbers on the mailbox in front of him. After a moment, he checked at the information he had written on his notepad, and nodded to himself.

'Yup...this is the place...Gino Weinberg's residence...'

He parked in the middle of the driveway, and climbed out of the car. The house in front of him was a rundown old place, with cracks in the walls, and a garden full of weeds. The remains of a red bicycle laid on the front lawn, with a car tire resting on top of it for some unknown reason. Several tiles on the roof had fallen off, and a small tabby cat ran by as Jeremiah walked up the front steps.

'This place is a fuckin' dump...' Jeremiah thought as he knocked on the door after realizing the doorbell was broken.

The man who answered the door was the same man who had been the lover of Kallen Stadtfeld; Gino Weinberg, a handsome young man with long blonde hair and with such an amazing height that he even towered over Jeremiah, who was about 10 years his senior.

"Uh...hello there, officer..." Gino stammered nervously; his voice was slightly higher than it should be for someone his age, but Jeremiah paid it no mind.

"May I come in?"

"Err...y-yes...please..."

With a slight nod, Jeremiah stepped into the house, and Gino closed the door behind him.

Unbeknownest to either of them, as soon as they were out of view, the trunk of the police car suddenly swung open...and two golden-yellow eyes peered out.


	6. Chapter 6

I do not own Code Geass.

Please check out my AMVs and 'Family Geass/Geass Guy' videos on Youtube, too! My name there is "Hikasu3445".

PLEASE REVIEW SO I CAN KNOW WHAT YOUR THOUGHTS ARE, AND SO I CAN GET IDEAS ON HOW TO IMPROVE!! IT'S VERY IMPORTANT!

I actually feel kind of bad for what I've done to Suzaku in this fic, and for what I'm GOING to do to the poor guy...

HAPPY NEW YEAR, EVERYONE!!!

* * *

As he sat down on the couch, Jeremiah pulled a single cigarette out of his pocket and sucked on the end, not even bothering to light it.

"...Do you need a lighter?" Gino asked after taking his own seat across from him.

Jeremiah shook his head. "Nope. I'm fine."

Gino let out a small 'huh', and then fell silent, tapping his fingers on the arm of the chair and avoiding eye contact with the police officer.

Jeremiah sighed, and closed his eyes. Cupping his hands together, Jeremiah leaned forward slightly and said in a low voice, "...Kallen Stadtfeld has been murdered."

Gino's eyes grew wide in surprise.

"She was found dead in her home earlier this morning. She had been raped and tortured in a rather brutal fashion. We are currently on the search for her killer..."

Gino winced as if in pain, and rubbed his temples. He looked like he could have really used a cold beer right now. "...What does this have to do with me? Why are you telling me this?" he finally asked.

Jeremiah had knew that without a doubt that this question would come at some point. "At the moment, you are our only suspect..."

"WHAT?! ME?! WHAT THE HELL?!"

"Well, she IS your girlfriend, isn't she?" Jeremiah asked.

Gino sighed and shook his head. "No...not anymore. We...broke up about two weeks ago, actually..."

"I see...maybe the reason for your break-up would give you a motive..."

Gino stood up and exclaimed, "No way, man!! I didn't kill her!! There's no way I could do something so...so horrible!!! You have to believe me!"

"Look, kid," Jeremiah replied, "I wish I could say I believe you...but I don't. Some people could form a motive for murder out of something as simple as being dumped. I think the fact that you and Ms. Stadtfeld broke up only makes you even more suspicious in my eyes..."

Gino plopped back down in his seat, and covered his face with his hands. "...I didn't kill her..."

"Oh, and why did you two break up, then?"

Gino removed his hands from his face, snapping, "Listen, man, I broke up with HER! I just couldn't take all of her bitching anymore! She was controlling my life!!"

"...Maybe you killed her out of revenge for giving you grief..."

"I didn't kill her!! I've been here at home ever since 7:00 p.m. last night, watching a Star Trek marathon!! I didn't even think about Kallen even once during that entire time!! I didn't kill her, goddammit!!!"

Jeremiah was silent for a moment, sucking ever so calmly on his cigarette. "...Does Kallen have any other friends or past lovers you know about?"

"No, nothing about past lovers," Gino explained, "But...I know that she has at least two really close friends, named Shirley Fenette and Milly Ashford. I've never talked to them much, but I doubt either of them would want to kill Kallen, either..."

"Do you know where they live?"

Gino shook his head.

Jeremiah ran his hands through his hair and let out another deep sigh. He glanced at his watch; it was already early morning, and he felt like he would drop dead at any moment. 'I'm so fuckin' tired...'

Continuing the questioning, Jeremiah asked, "...Do you know if there is anyone in Kallen's line of business who held animosity towards her? Like, any of the other boxers she may have beaten in a match?"

Gino once again shook his head. "Everyone likes her there...mainly because she's the only female boxer they know, and some of the guys even consider her as their 'Master'...I don't really know alot of what goes down in there, so I can't say..."

'We're not making any progress at all...I'm just not good at interrogation when I'm so goddamn tired like this...'

Standing up, Jeremiah took out a pair of handcuffs and proclaimed, "Although you claim not to be the killer, we can't fully believe that what you are saying is the truth...I'm going to have to take you down to the station, for more questioning..."

Gino grunted in annoyance. "...Fuck this shit..."

"Sorry, kid, but this is how things work..."

Gino placed his hands behind his back and turned around, but as he did, he happened to glance up at the front doorway and saw...

"...You brought a girl with you?"

Jeremiah looked up as well. "What're you talking-?"

His words were cut off as he laid his eyes upon the girl Gino was speaking of...it was C.C., and she was aiming a pistol straight at him. In the darkness, her piss-yellow eyes glowed with an evil intensity. A shiver crawled up Jeremiah's spine, and the handcuffs dropped to the floor.

"...C.C., what're you doing here?" Jeremiah asked, trying to remain calm.

C.C. raised the gun slightly higher, and the barrel was now pointing at Jeremiah's face. "I am here...on direct orders of Zero to exterminate both of you..."

"W-W-WAIT A MINUTE!! WHAT?!! WHAT?!! YOU'RE GOING TO...WHAT?!!" Gino cried, waving his arms around in horror.

"So...Zero is the title of the one responsible for killing Kallen Stadtfeld," Jeremiah grunted, having ignored Gino's little outburst, "And you, C.C., have been secretly working for him behind Inspector Lamperouge's back...is that little guess of mine correct?"

C.C. was silent for a second, and then she replied, "...Yes, that is true."

"Wait...H-H-HOLD ON A MOMENT!! I'M LOST HERE!! I DON'T GET WHAT'S GOING ON!! I...I DON'T WANNA DIE!!!" Gino spoke up. He quickly ran behind Jeremiah for cover, who just sighed in disappointment at the blond man's cowardly attitude.

"Tell me, C.C...what is it that this 'Zero' wants? Does he really plan on killing Officer Suzaku's wife, as well?" Jeremiah questioned.

C.C. nodded. "He plans on bringing down this entire rotten city and everyone in it, all of these despicable beings...every last one of them..."

"...How long have you been under orders? How did you come in contact with this person? How did you escape from Inspector Lamperouge without him realizing?"

C.C. closed her eyes. "...I'm sorry, but I cannot answer any more of your questions...for the answers I shall give you will just go to waste in the end..."

She pulled the trigger, and Jeremiah braced himself, but the bullet he flew between his legs and pierced right into Gino's abdomen.

"...What...?"

"AAAAAAAAAUGH!!!" Screaming in pain, Gino collapsed to the ground and clutched his stomach. Blood was beginning to drip out onto the floor, and Jeremiah became frozen on the spot.

'She's...she's no novice at firearms, that's for sure...' he thought, shivering.

"Zero's law is absolute, and by following him, I will become free of my destiny...as will you and your partner soon enough..." C.C. said as she took a step forward.

Jeremiah clenched his fists, and found it growing more and more difficult to keep his cool. 'Suzaku...this is probably the first time I could have used you around, you worthless idiot...'

"OH MY FUCKIN' GOD!! YOU MOTHERFUCKIN' STUPID BITCH!!!" Gino screeched, still clutching his wound, "YOU SHOT ME!!! GODDAMMIT, IT HURTS LIKE A MOTHERFUCKER!!! JESUS CHRIST!!! OH GOD!!! AHHH-"

"Shut up." C.C. fired several more shots, and Gino collapsed to the ground, a puddle of blood soon forming under his body.

Jeremiah bent down and lifted Gino's head; his face was riddled with bullet holes. He was dead.

'Dammit...'

Jeremiah got back to a stand and turned to face C.C., who still had him in her firing range. A single sweat drop rolled down the side of Jeremiah's face, and he bit his lower lip.

"You think you can get away with this?"

'It's now or never...'

He brought his right hand closer to his belt. C.C. remained still.

"You're one hell of an evil bitch, you know that?"

'Almost...'

He felt the tips of his fingers press against something cold and metallic. Jeremiah didn't avert his eyes from matching with C.C.'s lifeless gaze.

"...Unfortunately for you, though, my dear C.C., I don't plan on dying here..."

'...NOW!!!'

With amazing speed, Jeremiah unsheathed his pistol, unhitched the safety, and fired three shots before leaping behind a couch for cover.

Taking in a deep breath, Jeremiah thought, 'It's a good thing I'm no novice, either...'

He carefully peeked over the edge of the couch, only to find she had disappeared from her original position. A splotch of blood stained the floor where she had been standing only a moment ago.

"Ahh...so I did hit her...good..."

Suddenly, Jeremiah felt something press against the back of his head. "You only scratched me, really..." whispered C.C.'s voice from behind him.

Jeremiah's pistol slipped out of his sweaty palms and it crashed to the floor with a THUD. 'How...how did she get behind me so quickly...?'

"Good-bye...Officer Jeremiah..."

Jeremiah gritted his teeth. "No...not yet!!!" He spun his legs around, and smashed his foot into C.C.'s thigh, causing her to lose balance and fall backwards. Jeremiah quickly snatched up his pistol again and fired five bullets into C.C.'s chest.

"TAKE THAT, YOU FUCKING BITCH!!!"

"Ugh..." C.C. let out a pained moan before collapsing to the ground. Her mouth hung open wide and she stared up at the ceiling for a moment, and then her eyes slowly closed. The hand holding her gun fell limp, and Jeremiah realized the deed was done. He didn't even need to check the pulse to know that she was dead.

Wiping the sweat from his brow, Jeremiah thought, 'Damn...I really thought I was going to die there...'

Standing up, Jeremiah glanced over at Gino's body. 'It looks like we'll have to give this guy a proper burial I suppose...I always hate it when an innocent person dies...'

Jeremiah took out his walkie-talkie and was about to call up the station about what had just transpired...when he felt an intense pain flow through his entire body.

"Aaah...Ahh..."

Glancing down at his chest, he saw a large stain of blood spread out on the middle of his chest, and then everything...began...to fade away...into darkness...

"S...Shit..."

As he slowly fell to the floor, Jeremiah took one last look over his shoulder...and saw C.C. standing there, smoke slowly lifting off of the barrel of her gun. A smirk was spread out on her usually-emotionless face, a smirk of both victory and complete arrogance.

"Good thing I decided to wear a bullet-proof vest under my clothes..." she murmured, and then Jeremiah's hearing went as well. He felt himself suddenly enveloped in a cold breeze, and he was practically fighting to keep his eyes open, a battle he was losing.

'Dammit...why...why...I shouldn't...I can't die here...I need...to finish this case...and Suzaku...he's going to be killed next...'

Jeremiah's eyes finally closed, and he hit the ground. He felt like his entire skeletal frame had shattered upon impact. His heartbeat came to a stop. His hands fell to his sides, and he ceased to move.

'Suzaku...you...you better not die...got it? If you do...I'll...I'll never forgive you...'

Standing over Jeremiah's body, C.C.'s smirk remained, and she took a moment to fire a bullet into Jeremiah's face before heading out...to rendezvous with Zero at the docks.

* * *

"We're here...the docks,"

As soon as Lelouch parked the car, Suzaku jumped out, and peered through the inky darkness that surrounded them. Near a set of cargo boxes, he could make out a tall figure carrying a heavy bag of sorts standing around, as if waiting for something...or someone.

Raising the pistol Lelouch had lent him, Suzaku hissed, "There you are...you fucking bastard..."

Lelouch just watched on as Suzaku rushed ahead without any thoughts of his own safety. Getting out of the car as well, Lelouch headed to the trunk and opened it to retrieve some items...


	7. Chapter 7

I do not own Code Geass.

Please check out my AMVs and 'Family Geass/Geass Guy' videos on Youtube, too! My name there is "Hikasu3445".

PLEASE REVIEW SO I CAN KNOW WHAT YOUR THOUGHTS ARE, AND SO I CAN GET IDEAS ON HOW TO IMPROVE!! IT'S VERY IMPORTANT!

I actually feel kind of bad for what I've done to Suzaku in this fic, and for what I'm GOING to do to the poor guy...

I used the Matrix theme 'Clubbed to Death' as inspiration to set the mood for me while I wrote this chapter.

* * *

As Suzaku ran through the docks, towards the dark figure, its very presence beckoning him to come, he realized he could see his own breath. The sun was beginning to rise, shining its reflection off the large ocean that laid before them.

'Damn...it's cold...' For a moment, Suzaku figured he should head back to the car and grab his coat, but he immediately shook that idea out of his mind. 'No! I have to save Euphie at all costs!! I can't waste any more time!!!'

Not once did Suzaku ever consider asking Lelouch for help, or even turn back to glance at the car to see if Lelouch was following him. It would have been of no use, though, as Lelouch had already disappeared, the trunk of the police car still left open.

Crouching in the shadows of one of the large crates nearby, Suzaku peered up ahead, and thanks to the sunlight, he was finally able to see his wife's captor:

It was a tall, thin young man. He had short silver hair and bangs hung over his face. He wore an odd outfit one would normally see in a sci-fi flick, with large shoulder pads and long black gloves. He also wore a red visor that hid his eyes. Hoisted over his shoulder was a large brown potato sack, but Suzaku had a good idea of what was really inside that sack...

'Euphie...what did that bastard do to you?' Switching off the safety on the gun, Suzaku began to make his way closer to the kidnapper. However, when he was only about a few feet away, he accidentally stepped on the tail of a small tabby cat that happened to be lying around.

"OH SHIT!!!"

The cat let out a yelp, and the silver-haired man turned his direction towards Suzaku, who immediately aimed his gun at the kidnapper's face. Neither man risked the danger of moving even a single muscle, and they continued to stare at one another for what felt like ages.

Finally, Suzaku spoke up. "...Are you Zero?"

"...Are you Lord Zero?" the man asked back.

Suzaku held his finger over the trigger. "You mocking me?!!"

The man let out a sigh and ran his hands through his hair. "Aww...so you're not Lord Zero, huh? I was hoping I'd finally get to meet him, the man who gave my life meaning again..."

"JUST WHO THE HELL ARE YOU?!!!" Suzaku screamed in fury.

The man tapped his chin, and then replied, "My name...I abandoned it long ago. You can call me 'Mao', however..."

"ALRIGHT...JUST HAND OVER MY WIFE, AND I WON'T HAVE TO SHOOT!!" Suzaku ordered, motioning to the sack hanging over Mao's shoulder.

"Dude, I don't even know who you are...that letter I left was for Lord Zero, so he could meet up with me here...I guess you ended up getting it, huh?" Mao remarked, not even flinching at the sight of Suzaku's pistol aiming at his chest.

"YOU'RE JUST A HENCHMAN OF THAT GODDAMN MOTHERFUCKER ZERO?!!"

Mao's expression suddenly grew fierce. "Don't you EVER say such things about Lord Zero!! He is the greatest being on Earth!! He is a god in human form!! He will bring about a new age upon our planet!!!"

"...Do you seriously believe that shit you're spouting...?"

"SHIT?!! SHIT?!! SHIT?!! YOU DUMBASS, LORD ZERO IS-"

"LOOK, ACTUALLY, I DON'T HAVE TIME TO LISTEN TO YOUR SCREWED-UP FANATICS, DAMMIT!!! IF YOU DON'T GIVE ME BACK MY WIFE, I'LL HAVE TO SHOOT YOU!!!" Suzaku barked, fully determined to rescue Euphemia, no matter the cost.

"...You sure you want it?"

"OF COURSE I'M SURE!!! DON'T EVEN ASK SUCH A GODDAMN STUPID QUESTION, YOU FAGGOT!!! JUST GIVE THE BAG TO ME...NOW!!!!"

Mao shrugged. "Alright..."

Without any hesitation, he tossed the large sack over to Suzaku, who immediately caught it in his arms. He immediately realized that it definitely wasn't heavy enough to have a human being inside of it. Suzaku knew what he would find if he opened the bag, but at this point, he couldn't go back and pretend it never happened. His life was falling apart right before his eyes...

'Euphie...are you...are you really...?'

Placing the bag on the ground, Suzaku untied the opening and opened the sack...

"AAA...AAA...AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!"

The first thing that rolled out onto the ground was an eyeball, a trail of blood left in its wake. Suzaku couldn't even bring himself to look further inside; turning his head to the side, he threw up what felt like his entire stomach. His throat burned like hell, and his eyes were watering.

"Oh god...Euphie...Euphie...Euphie...why...why..." Suzaku started to run his hands up and down along his face and hair, his eyes becoming wide and dilated.

Mao smirked. "...It was fun, cutting her up..."

Suzaku gritted his teeth, and his vision was shrouded in red. "YOU...YOU BASTARD!!!!" Suzaku raised his pistol and fired several shots, each one of them piercing Mao in the chest. The silver-haired man staggered back slightly before blood burst out from between his lips.

"L...L...Lord Zero...you were right...about my future...I would die...here..." where Mao's final words before he crashed to the ground, and his life came to an end. A nearby crow flew off in a rush, letting out a caw that echoed throughout the silence of the early morning. Suzaku just sat on his knees, staring at the bag that held the bloody remains of his beloved wife.

'I failed...I failed you...I failed everyone...my life is nothing but failure...'

"...Hello, Suzaku Kururugi..."

Suzaku gasped and spun around...and he saw a figure standing on top of one of the crates, aiming a small handheld machine gun straight at him. He wore a long black cape that fluttered in the wind, and a strange oval-shaped helmet with a tinted shield to hide the face. He wore a very specialized uniform, complete with custom-made gloves and boots. Suzaku knew immediately who this mysterious figure must be.

"...You're Zero, aren't you?" Suzaku snarled, standing back up, and grasping his pistol in his hands once again.

The masked man nodded. "Indeed...I am...Zero..."

"You...you killed Kallen Stadtfeld?" Suzaku asked, breathing heavily.

Zero nodded again. "Yes...I am responsible for her death...I killed her and raped her...for the hell of it..."

Clenching his fists, Suzaku then screamed, "AND...AND...AND YOU ARE ALSO RESPONSIBLE FOR THE DEATH OF EUPHEMIA KURURUGI, AS WELL?!!"

This time, the enigmatic being known as Zero shook his head. "No...that was my follower, Mao, who you just killed in cold blood, that had done the deed...his only objective was to take your whore of a wife and bring her here to me..."

"WHY?!! WHY DID YOU WANT HER?!! ANSWER ME, DAMMIT!!!" Suzaku roared, tears streaming down his cheeks.

"The reason is simple...she had information I required to destroy this entire city..."

Suzaku's eyes grew wide with horror. Out of the shadows, on top of another nearby crate...was another Zero, wielding the same handheld machine gun, also holding it aimed towards Suzaku. Then, another Zero...and another...and another...soon, Suzaku found himself surrounded by five people, all of them claiming to be Zero, all of them with firearms, ready to gun him down like the dog he is.

As he glanced around nervously, Suzaku asked, "...I-Information?!"

Zero, the first Zero to have appeared, replied, "Her father is one of the most well-known, richest architectural experts in the entire city!! He basically helped build this entire place from the ground up! I want to acquire blueprints of the city, so I can...no, wait, what am I telling all of you this for? You will be long gone soon enough, my friend..."

Suzaku swallowed his spit. "W...W...WHY ARE THERE SO MANY OF YOU?!!!"

"DIE, SUZAKU KURURUGI!!! OPEN FIRE!!!"

Suzaku screamed as the first bullet tore through his shoulder. The next three blasted into his hand, tearing off two of his fingers in the process. He lost his balance after a spray of bullets dug into his legs, rending them useless. As he fell, several more bullets blasted into Suzaku's back, and blood sprayed into the sky. Still, Suzaku continued to live.

"E...EUPHIE...EUPHIE...EUPHIE!!! I'LL...I'LL DIE BY YOUR SIDE!!!! I LOVE YOU WITH ALL OF MY HEART AND SOUL!!!!" Dragging himself on top of the sack that held his wife's remains, Suzaku clutched it tightly as if for dear life, weeping silently. More and more bullets pounded into his back, but Suzaku refused to move. Even when he finally did pass away, it took a few minutes before his grip on the bag finally loosened.

With tears glistening in his eyes, Suzaku toppled over, and his eyes slowly closed.

'E...Euphie...'

A heavy silence filled the air, and then...a chuckle was heard.

"Heh...heh heh...heh heh heh heh heh..." Reaching up, the first Zero pulled off his helmet, and revealed himself to be...Lelouch Lamperouge.

Throwing his head back, Lelouch laughed insanely like a madman as he exclaimed, "HA HA HA HA HA!!! YOU STUPID, STUPID FOOL!!!!! DYING TRYING TO PROTECT A SACK FULL OF BODY PARTS!!! HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA!!! THIS IS WHY ALL OF YOU HUMANS ARE SO PATHETIC IN YOUR WAYS!!! OH GOD...HA HA HA...OH FUCK, IT'S SO FUNNY...You guys can take off your helmets now...he's dead..."

The other four Zeroes reached up and removed their helmets as well. One was a young woman with long purple hair, another was a man with short blond hair and a stern face, the third one was another man with long black hair, and the final Zero was a young man with dark-blue hair that curled upwards in a wavy fashion.

"Cornelia...Schneizel...Li Xingke...Rivalz...you all did well," Lelouch remarked, giving them all a nod of approval.

Blushing slightly, Cornelia tapped her fingers together and asked, "D...Do you think the REAL Lord Zero will be pleased...?"

Lelouch smirked. "Of course...we will all be praised by the words of infinite wisdom the Lord has to offer..."

Schneizel glanced down at Suzaku's corpse. Licking his lips, he sneered, "Shall I...dispose of the body?"

Lelouch shrugged and began to walk away. "Do what you like...I am going to go and contact Lord Zero now, to inform that we have completed the first stage of Operation: Geass..."

Rivalz turned his gaze to the rising sun, and, sighing, he murmured, "It's going to be a long day..."


	8. Chapter 8

I do not own Code Geass.

Please check out my AMVs and 'Family Geass/Geass Guy' videos on Youtube, too! My name there is "Hikasu3445".

PLEASE REVIEW SO I CAN KNOW WHAT YOUR THOUGHTS ARE, AND SO I CAN GET IDEAS ON HOW TO IMPROVE!! IT'S VERY IMPORTANT!

You can consider this as 'Part 2' of the fic, I suppose. This chapter just sort of introduces two of the new main characters, and re-explains alot of things that took place in the last 7 chapters.

Another thing, I don't hate Kallen at all, I just killed her off in the beginning because she had no use in the story anywhere else, and because I wanted to kill off someone who is a major character in the actual series to start things off.

* * *

_Two days later..._

Police Officer Kaname Ohgi felt almost powerless as he watched them slowly lower the coffin into the grave, where it will remain for all eternity. Surrounding him were both friends and family of the deceased. Some of them wept, some of them whispered amongst themselves, and others just stared on with a sad look in their gaze. He felt a nimble thin hand wrap around his large palm, and saw that it was his wife, Viletta. She had her free hand over her swollen stomach; she was 7 months pregnant.

"I can't believe he's gone..." Viletta murmured, shaking her head.

Kaname smiled slightly and replied, "Jeremiah was a good man. I'm sure that he would have rather died in action than from old age. He probably hadn't had planned to die so early, though...I wanted him to see our child..."

Viletta was silent for a moment, contemplating to herself. "I wonder if they ever found that other man..."

"You mean, Officer Suzaku? Maybe...if they ever do, I want to pay a personal visit to him in the prison..."

Viletta glanced up at her husband. "Do you really think he's the one who killed Jeremiah?"

Kaname shrugged and said, "I don't know. All we know is that Jeremiah was found dead by a gunshot through the heart, and a shot to the head. What's more, Officer Suzaku mysteriously disappeared some point during that incident. He is the most likely suspect, and the only lead we have to even figuring out this murder at the moment. His wife, Euphemia, has also gone missing, and it is possible that they had run off together after committing the deed...still, the reason for a motive is pretty much impossible to figure out..."

"...Why would he do such a thing? We only met Suzaku once, and he seemed like such a good man," Viletta remarked, "A bit dumb, but a good man...I don't think he's the culprit..."

"Well, who do you think is the real killer, then?"

Viletta shrugged. "...I don't know...I just don't think it was Suzaku..."

The coffin had finally reached the bottom of the pit, and now dirt was being poured in to fill up the hole. "We also still haven't learned anything about the Kallen Stadtfeld murder case, either..." Kaname pointed out.

"Oh, yes...you told me about that one...that poor woman..." Viletta's eyes fell, and she once again shook her head.

"There's alot of connections, but we just don't have the answer of what it is that they all connect to. Here's how it is: Both Jeremiah and Suzaku were investigating the case when the incident occurred. Jeremiah had gone to apprehend a suspect, when both he and the suspect, a man named Gino Weinberg, were shot to death. According to reports, Suzaku was not at that location when the police arrived, and his gun, which was recognized by the police because of the smiley-face sticker on the handle, was found at the crime scene. It had been wiped clean of fingerprints, which further increased the chance that Suzaku may have been the criminal, as well as lowered the chance, because it may have been used by someone else, but that's highly doubtful. We checked Kallen Stadtfeld's residence, and found the strange symbol, along with the words 'ZERO' and 'GEASS' written on the wall in blood. We still have no idea who the murderer is for this case, but we did learn that Inspector Lamperouge and C.C. had been called in to inspect the area earlier that same day..."

"...You mean that famous detective who works with the death-row criminal?!"

"Yes, that's him. We have official confirmation that they had visited the crime scene and had interacted with Jeremiah and Suzaku from several officers who had arrived at the scene later on, although the police chief himself claims that no such call was made. It's really confusing. They've seemed to have disappeared as well, but we were told that they were just on vacation together as a reward for all of their hard work this past year. So many roots, yet the stem that connects them all is a mystery to us all...gives me a headache just thinking about it..."

Viletta tapped her chin, deep in thought. "Well, I wish I could be of more help...but I'm just an ex-Forensic Scientist, after all...and it's all your fault!"

"Hey, you're the one who wanted a baby!" Kaname snapped.

Suddenly, Kaname and Viletta both realized the funeral had ended, and they were now standing in front of a buried grave, arguing amongst themselves, alone.

Looking around, Kaname rubbed the back of his head sheepishly and said, "Uh...maybe we should just head back to the car?"

Viletta nodded. "Good idea..."

As they headed down the walkway and entered the parking lot, they noticed a strange man standing beside their car, apparently waiting for them. He had slicked-back brown hair, and a stern face. He wore a large brown overcoat, and was smoking a cigarette idly, as if he didn't have a care in the world. He noticed Kaname and Viletta, and he waved over to them.

"...Who is that man?" Viletta whispered into Kaname's ear.

Kaname stared at the stranger for a moment, and then it came to him. "Ah! He's...he's Detective Kyoshiro Tohdoh, second only to Inspector Lamperouge himself!! He's usually a rather laid-back individual, but when it comes to work, he's probably more serious than anyone in his desire to solve a crime. At least, that's what I've heard about him. I wonder why he's here...maybe he came to see Jeremiah one last time..."

Walking up to the two of them, Tohdoh held out his hand and Kaname shook it after a moment of silence.

"You are Officer Kaname Ohgi, aren't you?" Tohdoh asked with a slight smirk.

"Uh...yes, I am," Kaname replied with a nod.

"Good," Tohdoh turned his attention to Viletta, "...Would it be a problem for you to drive home alone, my dear?"

Kaname took a step forward and said in a gruff voice, "Hey, just what the hell do you want, anyway?"

Tohdoh stuffed his hands into his pockets, and watched as a flock of geese passed overhead. "We've been assigned to solve the case revolving around the death of Officer Jeremiah and the disappearance of Officer Suzaku..."

Kaname clenched his fists, and sighed. "I would have personally requested to be assigned to this case from the start..." he commented.

Tohdoh smirked again, and then said, "Well, then, if that's what you wish...let us not dilly-dally!! There's this diner nearby we gotta head over to, so I can fill you in on the details over some food. I'm fuckin' starved...had to skip breakfast this morning..."

"What? We have to go to a diner?"

"Yeah. The other two members of our group will be meeting up with us there..."

Kaname blinked a few times, making sure he heard him right. "Wait...who are these OTHER MEMBERS you're talking about?"

"You'll see soon enough..." Tohdoh said, acting ever so mysterious.

Sighing, Kaname ran his palms over his face, and looked to his wife. "...You can drive home, right? I'll be home later...I promise..."

Viletta nodded. "I know you will...you don't need to promise me..."

Kaname smiled, and gave his wife a quick kiss on the lips before following after Tohdoh, who was already climbing into his car. He took another sad, longing look at Viletta before opening the door and getting in. As he took his seat, Kaname happened to get a quick glance of the backseat; a long black sword scabbard was lying on the cushions.

'What the...?'

"Hey, hey!! Put your damn seatbelt on already!! We're going!!!" Tohdoh snapped, and Kaname didn't waste any more time with hooking himself up to the seat. Kaname checked out the window and saw that Viletta was no longer standing there.

Letting out a heavy sigh, Kaname leaned back and closed his eyes as Tohdoh started up the car.

"Just so you know," Tohdoh spoke up as they turned off onto the main road, "The two people...are a woman and a 16-year-old..."

"Ah, I see..." Kaname nodded, but then he exclaimed, "WAIT, A 16-YEAR-OLD?!!!"

Tohdoh chuckled. "You'll see soon enough..."

Kaname was beginning to wonder if taking up this case was such a good idea in the first place...


	9. Chapter 9

I do not own Code Geass.

Please check out my AMVs and 'Family Geass/Geass Guy' videos on Youtube, too! My name there is "Hikasu3445".

PLEASE REVIEW SO I CAN KNOW WHAT YOUR THOUGHTS ARE, AND SO I CAN GET IDEAS ON HOW TO IMPROVE!! IT'S VERY IMPORTANT!

Updates will take a while longer nowadays due to me having to go back to school now, and because I'm working on alot of other fics as well. Sorry it's kind of short, too. Most of the chapters will probably be shorter now...but not by much.

* * *

The diner was owned by a small family who had been living as residents in the city for almost 50 years now. A large neon sign sat atop of the establishment, and flashy red-and-green banners hanging from the roof's edges fluttered gently in the wind. It had a very welcoming, warm feeling to it, as if it was happily opening its arms to greet you with all of its heart.

'I should bring Viletta here sometime...depending on if the food is good...' Kaname figured as he climbed out of the car. Tohdoh first glanced in the back to make sure the sword was still there, and then he got out as well. The air stank of tobacco smoke and gasoline, but that was of no importance right now.

"Well...let's go on in," Tohdoh grunted, and Kaname followed him inside. It was rather busy that time of day; the whole place was crowded with people, chattering away like it was nobody's business. Glancing around, Kaname tried to see if he could figure out who the two people were that Tohdoh had mentioned.

'A woman...and a 16-year-old...dammit, I'm gonna need alot more information than that!!'

Tohdoh, however, immediately found who he was looking for. "Ahh...there they are!"

Kaname looked to where the detective was pointing, and he saw them...and his jaw dropped open.

"That's...that's them?" Kaname asked in disbelief.

They were sitting at a window-side table, and both of them seemed deeply involved with their own actions. The woman had long orange hair and wide emerald-green eyes, and she was busily scribbling down something in a small brown notepad she was holding. The small boy sitting next to her had short brown hair, and he was shoving mouthful after mouthful of a plate of hashbrowns into his mouth. His eyes were the unnatural color of dark pink.

Waving Kaname over, Tohdoh remarked, "C'mon...I want you to meet them personally..."

As soon as Tohdoh had approached the table, the woman looked up and exclaimed, "Oh...you're Detective Tohdoh, aren't you? I saw your photo earlier at the police station when they told me to come here to meet up with you..."

"Indeed...I am Detective Tohdoh," Tohdoh nodded with a gentleman-like smile, and he shook the woman's hand.

"My name is Shirley Fenette," she introduced herself. Kaname also took a moment to introduce himself as well, and nodded to her.

"This kid," Shirley said, motioning to the boy sitting next to her, "Is apparently named Rolo..."

"Apparently?" Kaname asked, raising an eyebrow.

"He won't tell me anything else about himself...we just met here about an hour ago, and all he's done so far is empty my wallet with all of the food he's ordering..."

The boy didn't even glance up from his plate to acknowledge Tohdoh's and Kaname's presence.

"I'm also a detective, but I mainly work behind the scenes," Shirley told Kaname, "I have personal reasons for joining this case..."

"I see,"

"From what information I've obtained on him, Rolo was actually born in a third-world country, where he was trained as a child soldier. We had rescued him, although now his weaponry skills are used by the government as an ally. I know it's not ethically correct, but...that's how the world is right now, it seems...we're all a bunch of damn hypocrites..."

Kaname wasn't sure how to respond to that. He watched Rolo eat for a moment and wondered how such a peaceful-looking boy could have been raised to be a cold-blooded killer.

"Well, then," Tohdoh said, clapping his hands together as he took his seat across from Shirley and Rolo, "I believe it's time we discuss business..."

"It seems that at the moment, unless we can find a clue to help us learn more about this 'Zero', whose name was found at the residence of Kallen Stadtfeld, or concerning Officer Suzaku's disappearance, I'm afraid...we might not be able to do much of anything at the moment," Shirley explained in a very dry tone, one that made Kaname feel a bit uncomfortable.

"...Well, I heard they're holding a ceremony for Officer Jeremiah and all the work he'd done three days from now at city hall, so we can try to get some information then..." Tohdoh explained, and Shirley agreed to that idea.

As the group continued to speak amongst themselves, a man in the seat behind them was listening in on the conversation. He wore a large brown coat, a black fedora, and had dark-blue hair that curled upwards like the waves of an ocean. A smirk formed on his lips.

'So...that's where we shall perform the next stage of Lord Zero's master plan...city hall...'


	10. Chapter 10

I do not own Code Geass.

Please check out my AMVs and 'Family Geass/Geass Guy' videos on Youtube, too! My name there is "Hikasu3445".

PLEASE REVIEW SO I CAN KNOW WHAT YOUR THOUGHTS ARE, AND SO I CAN GET IDEAS ON HOW TO IMPROVE!! IT'S VERY IMPORTANT!

I really apologize for chapter 9; it was rushed, and I made it way too short. I just wanted to get it out quickly, but now I know that I've made a big mistake. Please don't stop reading the story and don't stop reviewing just because of that chapter! I won't try to rush things again, so please forgive me!!!

* * *

"...This Zero guy is obviously up to something..."

"...Maybe he killed Jeremiah as a way to keep him from spilling a certain piece of information..."

"...Just what the hell is going on..."

"...I have my suspicions about Inspector Lamperouge, too..."

"...We need to stop this bastard at all costs..."

As Shirley and Tohdoh continued to speak amongst themselves about the case, Kaname and Rolo both sat in silence. After having finished his meal, the young boy was now staring out the window, watching cars pass by at high speeds along the freeway. Kaname tried to understand the words flowing from Tohdoh's jabbering lips, but for some reason, he just couldn't bring himself to take it all in.

Suddenly, Tohdoh stood up, and announced, "I'll be right back...need to use the bathroom..."

"Me too..." murmured a small voice, and Kaname realized it had came from Rolo. His voice was devoid of tone, and rather plain. Staring at the two of them as they walked off, Kaname noticed something; Rolo was rather short for his age. Running his hands through his hair with a sigh, Kaname turned his gaze onto Shirley, who was taking a sip of coffee.

"...Is something wrong, Officer Kaname?" Shirley asked when she noticed him staring.

"No," Kaname replied, shaking his head, "I was just wondering...you said you had a personal reason for joining this case...what was it?"

"...That's my own business, Officer Kaname," Shirley said sharply.

"I understand that, it's just...if I could know why you wish to be doing this, to find this mysterious Zero, I could...feel like I could trust you more. You don't have to tell me, I won't force you, it's just...I guess I'm that kind of guy...I apologize if I'm making you uncomfortable..."

Shirley sighed, and placed her cup on her plate. Clasping her hands tightly around it, she closed her eyes and stated, "If it'll make you feel more comfortable working with me, then I will tell you without hesitation. I'm doing this...for Kallen Stadtfeld, whose murder is the very basis of these crimes..."

Kaname nodded, and he felt as if he had expected this answer to come from her.

"We were...very close. I was always there to support her, and she was always there to support me. Milly is our friend, too, but I think that Kallen and I...we had something special...she's the one who inspired me to take my job in the police force...I wanted to be strong and independent, like her...but I think that in the end, I was always dependent on her words and actions to help me get through the day..."

Shirley opened her eyes, and they shimmered in the sunlight like glass beads. For a single moment, Kaname almost felt like grabbing her and kissing her right then and there, to help her rid herself of the sorrows she held, but he immediately cursed himself for thinking such a thing. The last thing he would ever dare to do is cheat on his beloved wife, who he now hoped had made it back home safely.

"...So that's your reason, huh? To avenge your friend's death..." Kaname muttered to himself.

"How about you, Officer Kaname?" Shirley asked, waiting for Kaname to fulfill his promise.

Snapping back to reality, Kaname glanced down into his own coffee cup, and felt as if he could be swallowed up into the inky-black darkness. Picking up a spoon, he spun it around in a circular motion within the cup, watching as the liquid twist and turned. "I want to do this...for a reason similar to yours. I want to avenge Officer Jeremiah's death...he was my friend, and he was a good man...that's my reason..."

Shirley smirked. "You're a very 'righteous' man, aren't you, Officer Kaname...?"

Kaname ignored her statement, and then asked, "What about that Rolo kid? I'm really confused on how he can be of any use to us...I mean, isn't he just a kid?"

"Yes, he is a kid," Shirley explained, "But also an amazing sharp-shooter. He was able to best an entire police force at a shooting range, and using only ten bullets. When we rescued him and many other child-soldiers, he was given a choice: to either be taken to an orphanage where he will hopefully one day be adopted. Or, he could become an anti-terrorist weapon for our country..."

"...An anti-terrorist weapon? A human weapon? This sounds completely ridiculous..." Kaname questioned.

"I'm not really allowed to talk much about it, but, yes...that is basically the case. He was the only one we gave that choice; all of the other children were immediately taken to psychiatric wards and orphanages without question. Due to his amazing abilities, however, we wanted him to make a choice. Naturally, we had expected him to request to live in an orphanage with the other children, but instead...he chose to become an anti-terrorist weapon. Of course, he is given full American citizenship, and unless the situation is dire, he is allowed to choose which missions he wants to accept. I had only become his 'tutor' recently, and he wanted to follow me through this entire case...he doesn't talk much, so I can't find out his real reasons for this..."

"When you say 'tutor'...you mean...his keeper, don't you?" Kaname grunted.

Shirley nodded. "Pretty much."

"God...sounds like a whole load of BS, if you ask me...you can't be serious..." sighed Kaname, rubbing his face with his hands.

"Well...it's the truth..."

"Geez...what the hell is wrong with this country nowadays?"

"You got me..."

"Hey, we're back!!" exclaimed a voice, and Kaname and Shirley glanced up; it was Inspector Tohdoh, and Rolo was standing quietly by his side.

"You two sure took a while," Shirley spoke up, moving out of the way so Rolo could take his seat.

"Well, I stayed behind to make sure the little guy didn't try to run off or anything, but he didn't, so it's fine." Tohdoh explained, sitting down at the table.

Rolo glanced over his shoulder towards the table behind them; the man in the coat was no longer there.

"By the way, I've come up with an idea on where to begin our investigation..." Tohdoh spoke up, his words quick and relentless.

"Oh? And where would that be?" Shirley asked, sipping her coffee casually.

"I believe the best place to start...would be at the homes of both Inspector Lamperouge and Officer Suzaku, the only two suspects we currently have so far..."

"Do you really think that will help us get any leads?" Shirley replied.

Tohdoh nodded. "I believe so, yes. You and Rolo can check out Inspector Lamperouge's house, and Officer Kaname and I will inspect Officer Suzaku's home for clues..."

Shirley shut her eyes, and furrowed her brow. "...Very well, if that is what you think is best...let's do it,"

* * *

As he climbed into a dark-green jeep, Rivalz Cardemonde could barely contain his glee. He pulled off his hat and tossed it into the backseat, where it landed on top of a Benelli M1014 shotgun, which gleamed in the rays of sunlight. He glanced in the rear-view mirror and stared at himself for a moment, his mouth wide open in a toothy grin. Reaching into his coat pocket, Rivalz unsheathed a small black walkie-talkie, which he held close to his lips as he held his finger over the side-button.

"Lelouch...I have obtained the information that Lord Zero requires..."

A calm, cold voice crackled to life on the other line. "Oh...? And what would that be...?"

"Three days from now...a ceremony for Jeremiah, the man that Lord Zero had judgement passed upon, will be held in city hall..."

"Ahh...the second verse in Lord Zero's scriptures...'A mass gathering, they will shed their tears for the one they lost, and a storm of death will then be brought down upon them'...that is where the massacre shall take place...very good, Rivalz..."

Rivalz practically glowed from having received such a compliment from one of Lord Zero's closest followers. "Y-You're welcome!! My body and soul belong to Lord Zero, and he shall control me as he pleases!!!"

"...You know what you have to do now, right, Rivalz?" Lelouch's voice asked, slightly snickering.

Rivalz nodded. "Yes...I must eliminate all those that may interfere..."

"Good...now get to it!!" And with that, he hung up.

Rivalz shoved the walkie-talkie back into his pocket, and watched in silence as four figures exited the diner: Kaname, Tohdoh, Shirley and Rolo.

'The woman and child...I shall eliminate them first...'


	11. Chapter 11

I do not own Code Geass.

Please check out my AMVs and 'Family Geass/Geass Guy' videos on Youtube, too! My name there is "Hikasu3445".

PLEASE REVIEW SO I CAN KNOW WHAT YOUR THOUGHTS ARE, AND SO I CAN GET IDEAS ON HOW TO IMPROVE!! IT'S VERY IMPORTANT! THE MORE REVIEWS I GET, THE MORE INSPIRED I AM TO KEEP WRITING!!!

I really apologize for chapter 9; it was rushed, and I made it way too short. I just wanted to get it out quickly, but now I know that I've made a big mistake. Please don't stop reading the story and don't stop reviewing just because of that chapter! I won't try to rush things again, so please forgive me!!!

Yeah, until I can get more into the story again, which will either happen soon or never, chapters might take a rather long time to write...sorry...

By the way, isn't it a bit ironic that I have Shirley and Rolo working together, especially when in the actual Code Geass universe it's Rolo that kills Shirley? I just realized that...and something else that'll be revealed later will make this situation even more ironic as well...

Current possible theme song for the fic: 'Demons' by Brian McFadden or 'Hysteria' by Muse. I don't know. I just think they kind of fit for certain parts, especially for what'll happen later on...maybe...

* * *

It was almost 3:00 p.m., and the sun was shining brightly in the clear blue skies. However, at that moment, Shirley couldn't have cared less.

'I can't believe this...why the hell did I tell that guy my reasons for taking this case? I mean, all I did was stare at him for a moment, and I ended up spilling everything...I just don't get it...'

Shirley clenched her teeth as she drove her car into the driveway of Inspector Lamperouge's home, Rolo sitting beside her and sucking on a lollipop without worry. The inspector's house was a two-floor building, and as they climbed out of their seats, Shirley began to speak to Rolo on how to conduct the investigation.

"I'll search around the first floor to see if I can find anything," she explained, "I want you to check the second floor, okay? Look through every room as thoroughly as you can; don't even hesitate to tear off the wallpaper or cut up the carpeting, got it? Also, keep an eye out every now and then to ensure that no one will attempt to halt our progress! Understand?"

Rolo nodded. He spat what remained of his lollipop off to the side.

"Then, let's get this over with..."

Upon reaching the front door, Shirley was surprised to find it unlocked, and she and Rolo simply walked in without hesitation. However, what they found upon entry was not what had been expected; the entire house had basically been trashed. Furniture had been flipped over and broken apart, plates and glass cups laid in shattered pieces, sections of entire wallpaper had been torn off, and cabinets had been completely cleaned out, their contents scattered on the tiled floor.

"What...the hell happened here?" Shirley muttered, but an immediate realization came to her: there was someone else here at this very moment. Of course, there was just as much of a chance that whoever had done this had already left the premises, but she couldn't rule out the possibility that the person was still in this very house.

Shirley began to walk forward, every step slow and deliberate. She had one hand deep into her coat pocket, wrapped around her pistol, just in case things turned ugly. She slowed her breathing to barely even a single breath, so that to lower any chances of being heard by the intruder, if there was one. Rolo kept still by the doorway, watching Shirley with great intensity.

After about three minutes of traversing around the house, Shirley returned to Rolo and let out a sigh. "It seems...that whoever's done this has already left...I suppose we should begin our search,"

Rolo nodded and made his way to the upper floor, although he did wonder if maybe this huge mess was done ON PURPOSE, to keep them from locating something that would most likely point them in the direction of learning Officer Jeremiah's true murderer. If this was true, then that most likely means that Inspector Lamperouge really may have been involved with the murder of Officer Jeremiah and the disappearance of Officer Suzaku. They might not have really gone on a vacation at all, but had gone into hiding to keep their involvement with the crime left undiscovered. Unknown to him, Shirley was actually thinking the very same thing.

'Still, the entire police force basically believe it was Suzaku who killed Jeremiah and Gino Weinberg...there's even evidence against him!! However, if what I think is true, then 'Zero' is the one who ties into everything...but is it even really a name?' she wondered, scratching her head in confusion.

The second floor was the same as the first; completely trashed. This time, there were even books added into the mix, their pages torn and scattered about without care. Rolo picked up the first book he came across, and looked at the front cover. It was a TV repair manual. Rolo dropped the book and purposely stepped on it as he continued to walk along.

As he was passing by a window, Rolo happened to glance out...and saw a large dark-green jeep park out in front of the house. A man stepped out of the car, and Rolo recognized him as the same man in the coat and hat that he had seen sitting behind him back at the diner. Rolo watched as the man slipped a shotgun underneath his coat, and then he began to make his way towards the front door.

Cursing under his breath, Rolo spun around and dashed to the stairway. 'I...I can't let him...get to Shirley!!' he thought, and he began to take out the Smith & Wesson semiautomatic pistol he had been given earlier that same day.

Normally, Rolo would never have been so fearful for another person's safety; the training he had been forced to go through in his childhood had left him almost a empty shell, raised only to kill and be killed. However, when he had met Shirley, he felt something different about her. She never looked at him with disdain or disgust, like many of the police officers and government officials he had met before. She actually seemed to care about his well-being, and, despite their age difference, the short time they had been together, and the obvious knowledge that they could never be together...

...Rolo was beginning to fall in love with her. Or maybe, it was just a parental love he felt, as he could never remember having a mother. In any case, she had shown kindness towards him, and that made him feel warm inside. It was a feeling he had never had before, and he never wanted to lose that feeling.

When he finally reached the stairs, Rolo practically jumped down the stairs, skipping two steps at a time in his rush to intercept the oncoming intruder before Shirley was dragged into the whole mess.

'I...I HAVE TO SAVE HER!!!'

Rolo turned around the corner, and raised his gun...and cursed again.

The man had Shirley in a tight headlock, his shotgun held close to her face. He pressed the barrel against her cheek, and she winced in fear. Her pistol laid uselessly on the floor beside her feet; if only it had been a bit closer to him, Rolo might have had been able to snatch it up. A sweat drop rolled down the side of his face. The man was breathing heavily, and he seemed to enjoy holding Shirley so close to his body like this.

"I am here on orders of Lord Zero to kill you both..." the man sneered, "But first...I'm going to have some fun with this little lady..."

Rolo didn't lower his gun; in fact, he raised it slightly higher so it aimed directly at the man's smug face.

"Now, now...I think you should put that gun down...you don't want me to kill her, do you? We can talk about this, y'know..."

Rolo twitched, and he started to shiver, his mind swirling with confusion. 'What do I do? What do I do? What do I...?'

He looked to Shirley, who put on a brave face and gave him a slight nod.

'She...she's telling me to shoot him, even though he'll shoot her at the same time...'

Rolo couldn't do it; he couldn't let Shirley die. Even if it was for the greater good, to find out who this 'Zero' person was...he just couldn't do it.

"Put the gun down, boy..." the man ordered again, his tone much more threatening.

'I can't shoot...I can't...I can't...I've...I've never hesitated like this before...'

Shirley closed her eyes and waited for Rolo to fire the pistol...only it never came.

Rolo sighed, and brought his arms down to his sides. He still had his hand clenched tightly around his pistol. Tears were leaking out of his eyes and rolling down his face. "I'm...I'm sorry, Shirley...I...I can't do it..." he whimpered.

Shirley couldn't believe it. She wanted to scream for him to fire the damn gun, but it was already too late.

The man grinned. "Good...NOW DIE!!!"

With amazing speed, the man turned the shotgun away from Shirley and fired a single shot. Rolo's eyes grew wide as his left side burst open, splattering the walls and floor with blood. He twitched violently before collapsing to the ground.

Shirley had no reason to hold back her words any longer. "ROLO!!!!"

"NOW...FOR YOU!!!" The man slammed the gun's barrel into Shirley's mouth, and placed his finger over the trigger...


	12. Chapter 12

I do not own Code Geass.

Please check out my AMVs and 'Family Geass/Geass Guy' videos on Youtube, too! My name there is "Hikasu3445".

I really apologize for chapter 9; it was rushed, and I made it way too short. I just wanted to get it out quickly, but now I know that I've made a big mistake. Please don't stop reading the story and don't stop reviewing just because of that chapter! I won't try to rush things again, so please forgive me!!!

Yeah, until I can get more into the story again, which will either happen soon or never, chapters might take a rather long time to write...sorry...

* * *

"Heh heh heh...one down, one to go..."

The man, his eyes full of madness, prepared to pull the trigger, and blow a hole straight through Shirley's head, bringing her life to an end in one fell swoop. Tears poured down Shirley's cheeks; out of fear for her own life, and for watching poor young Rolo be shot right before her eyes. She could feel the sweat dripping off the man's face and hit her in the eyes, which made her feel even sicker.

Shirley could barely hear anything but her own heartbeat, pounding in her eyes. She looked out of the corner of her eye at Rolo, who was still lying on the floor, unmoving.

'Oh god...he can't be dead...he can't be...he's too young to die!!!'

"Too bad I couldn't have my fun with ya first..." the man sneered, and then...

...a rather loud beep emitted from within his coat.

"...Eh...? What now?!" Instead of firing the gun, the man reached into his coat pocket, and took out a small black walkie-talkie. Shirley blinked a few times in confusion.

'What the hell...?!'

"...Yes?" the man asked, feeling a bit awkward now that his little 'moment' had just been interrupted.

A voice spoke coldly over the intercom; Shirley immediately recognized it as sounding very familiar, although at the moment she couldn't tell where she had heard that voice before. "...A new verse has been written by Lord Zero...we are coming closer and closer to our goal..."

The man broke out into a wide grin. "Oh, really? What is it?! What is it that the great Lord Zero has to say? I will gladly fulfill any mission he desires to present me!!!"

The voice on the other line coughed slightly. "On the moment that justice may triumph, darkness will break through, and the judge will be devoured by his own hand..."

The man tapped his chin, and, after a second, grunted, "...What does that mean?"

"It means," explained the voice, "That you are to let the woman and child live...and commit suicide...right now..."

".................Huh?" For a moment, Shirley saw the man's right eye twitch.

"Do you not understand? You are justice, the judge...they are darkness, for they are the enemies that stand in the way of Lord Zero...and you must take your own life, while they live on..."

The man broke out into a cold sweat. He bit his upper lip, and blinked a few times, as if trying to tell whether he was living in a dream or a nightmare. His hand shook slightly as he held onto the walkie-talkie.

"What if...what if I refuse to such a ridiculous order?" he said, speaking through clenched teeth.

The voice on the other line was silent for a moment. "...Lord Zero himself would like to speak to you..."

Both the man and Shirley let out gasps. 'Lord Zero...himself?!!'

* * *

Lelouch stood outside the door of a elegant little bathroom, waiting patiently. Suddenly, the door slightly creaked open, and a long, thin arm reached out, and made a beckoning hand gesture with its bony fingers. Lelouch bowed slightly, and handed the walkie-talkie over to the owner of the arm, who then pulled his hand back in with amazing speed, and slammed the door shut.

A lean, tall male figure, wearing only a towel around his waist, sat atop the toilet seat and held the walkie-talkie up to his lips...

* * *

"...Rivalz-kun,"

Lord Zero's voice was different from the previous speaker; he had a calm, friendly air, as if he was speaking to a close friend, yet at the same time...Shirley could feel the fear swelling up inside of her.

"L...L...Lord Zero..." Rivalz stammered. His right eye was twitching again.

"Is it true that you are defying my will?" asked Lord Zero, a hint of sadness in his voice.

"Well...it's just...I mean...I...I have to commit suicide...seriously?"

"Of course!!" Lord Zero exclaimed, "We will not gain control of the world unless my will is followed to the exact point!! Do you not understand that?!!"

"I'm sorry!! I'm sorry!!! But...how can I possibly kill myself!! You...you promised we'd all rule the world together!!!"

"Times change, my friend...and so have I..."

"W-What do you mean?!!"

"You...have no place in my new world order anymore...you useless maggot..."

"Ehh...?! Lord Zero, why're you...oh god, what the fuck is going on?!!! I followed you for everything you promised me!!! You never said we would have to die!!!"

Suddenly, Lord Zero's voice became very aggressive and threatening. "YOU ARE NOT ONE TO QUESTION MY IDEALS, RIVALZ!!! YOU SWORE YOUR ALLEGIANCE TO ME, AND I EXPECT YOU TO FOLLOW MY EVERY WORD!!!"

"But...but...but..."

"I am rather disappointed in you, doing as you like nowadays. You are my first, and hopefully last, failure. As my final words to you, Rivalz Cardemonde...**_DIE_**..."

Then, he hung up.

At that instant, Rivalz immediately froze up. His walkie-talkie slipped out of his grasp, and fell to the floor. A deep growl emitted from within his throat, and tears of blood leaked out of his eyes. Red circles formed around his pupils, and foam spewed between his lips. His body began to convulse violently, as if it was being torn apart.

"Uh...ahh...ahhhhh!!!!"

'What...what the hell is going on?!! WHAT'S HAPPENING TO HIM?!!!' Shirley wondered in horror.

* * *

The bathroom door swung open once again, and Lord Zero himself stepped out. Brushing back his hair, he haded the walkie-talkie to Lelouch, who then asked, "...What shall become of Rivalz Cardemonde, m'lord?"

"...He will return to the Earth..." Lord Zero replied.

"Do you not fear the consequences?" Lelouch questioned, "After all, his body and possessions will be examined by the police force...they may find out information that would have best been kept hidden,"

Lord Zero smirked. "...That's what I'm hoping for..."

With no more questions begging to be asked, Lelouch bowed and walked away.

* * *

"A-AAAAAUGHHHHHH!!!"

Still screaming like a maniac, Rivalz pushed Shirley away, causing her to fall to the floor. Rolo's spilt blood splashed onto her shirt and pants, but that was the least of her worries right now. When she looked up to see what had happened, Rivalz was now holding the barrel of his own shotgun against his forehead. He was breathing heavily, and he was now longer going into hysterics unlike only a minute earlier.

"L...Lord Zero...please...don't...abandon me..." were the only words Rivalz could mutter before he pulled the trigger. The explosive eruption of the gun firing felt like a shock-wave.

The back of his head burst apart, and brains, blood and bone splattered all over the floor and down his back. He swayed once to the right before collapsing to the ground. Clumps of brain matter and blood were clinging to his hair, and his eyes had gone completely white.

He was dead. His shotgun laid by his side, smoke still flowing out of the barrel.

Shaking violently all over, Shirley covered her mouth with her hands. 'Oh my god...I think...I'm gonna be sick...'

"S...Shirley..."

Shirley gasped, and she turned around to see Rolo now sitting up against the wall, clutching his side. Blood was still pouring out of his wound, and he looked terribly weak. Even so, he was still alive...and Shirley had never felt so relieved in her whole life.

"Oh god, Rolo...I'm...I'm so happy you're alive..." Shirley breathed, tears pouring down her cheeks.

"Shirley..." Rolo panted, "I'm sorry...that I failed you like this...I disobeyed your orders...forgive me...I let myself...become distracted..."

Forcing a small smile, Shirley whispered, "It's okay, Rolo...it's okay...this was all my fault, anyway...I'm not mad at you...thank you for trying your best..."

Rolo smiled as well. "...Good. I'm glad...you're not mad..."

Without wasting any more time, as Rolo began to fully lose consciousness, Shirley quickly pulled out her cellphone...


	13. Chapter 13

Disclaimer: I do not own Code Geass.

A/N: 'Rolo Haliburton' is apparently a codename Rolo himself uses at some points during the show, so that's the name he uses in this fic.

* * *

_At the local hospital, near the ER wing..._

Shirley kept her face buried into her hands as she sat alongside Detective Tohdoh, waiting for any news regarding Rolo and the injuries he had sustained.

"Oh god...poor Rolo...this is all my fault..." Shirley murmured in despair.

Tohdoh shook his head. "No, it's not..."

"YES, IT IS!!!" Shirley suddenly snapped, getting to a stand. Her eyes were brimming with tears. "IT'S MY FAULT FOR GETTING CAPTURED BY THAT BASTARD, AND NOW ROLO MIGHT ACTUALLY DIE!!! IT'S COMPLETELY MY FAULT!!!"

Breathing heavily, Shirley noticed that several visitors nearby were giving her strange looks, so she sat down again, embarrassed. Strands of her hair hung down over her face, but she didn't bother to brush them out of the way. She looked completely miserable. The very idea that she might have caused the death of a child was eating away at her conscience.

'God, I wish I could have a smoke right now...' Tohdoh thought, grimacing.

Kaname came walking around the corner carrying two steaming hot cups of coffee in his hands. Taking a seat beside Shirley, Kaname offered one of the cups to her. "Here," he said, "Take it, drink it, and relax...Rolo will be fine..."

Shirley dug her fingers into her knees, and bit her lower lip. "But...but...he lost so much blood-"

"Look, if you're going to keep agonizing over it, then you'll be living with unneeded guilt for the rest of your life!!" Tohdoh spoke up, growing increasingly annoyed with Shirley's depressing attitude, "You need to believe in him, you need to believe that he'll come through...because the fact that you seem to think that he's already dead must mean you don't even trust him enough to be able stay alive..."

"N-No...that's not true..." Shirley stammered.

"It's not your fault either, Shirley," Tohdoh continued, "It was that Rivalz bastard who shot him, not you, okay? Stop being so hard on yourself...how someone as weak-hearted as you made it to become a top member of the police force, I'll never know...just stop fessing over it, okay? Rolo will live...I promise you."

Shirley didn't have to respond this time, because she knew that Tohdoh was right. As he took a sip of his own coffee, Kaname stared off at the dark-gray wall across from them, contemplating their current situation.

"...What has been done with the body of Rivalz Cardemonde, anyway?" Kaname suddenly asked.

"An autopsy is being performed even as we speak," Tohdoh replied, "Every item he had with him at that time, including his truck, are being inspected for DNA samples, as well as for any more information regarding 'Zero'..."

Shirley suddenly remembered; she had completely forgotten about it due to her worry over Rolo's condition. "I remember...I heard Zero's voice over the walkie-talkie, just before Rivalz had committed suicide..."

"Y-You heard his voice?! What did he sound like?! Did he have any noticeable traits concerning his voice?!" Tohdoh probed, now determined to learn more regarding this important piece of new information.

Shirley shook her head. "No...his voice was so calm, yet so demanding at the same time...I couldn't decipher his temperament in the short matter of time that he spoke. There was a powerful intensity in his quiet voice, almost like the calm before the storm. There was another voice, though, that spoke before Zero's, a voice that was much less in control of their emotions...and I am pretty sure I've heard it before..."

Kaname's grip around his cup tightened slightly. "...Do you know who the other voice might have belonged to?"

This time, Shirley nodded her head. Taking in a deep breath, she spoke only three words: "Inspector Lelouch Lamperouge."

Tohdoh's eyes fell to the floor. Kaname said nothing, and he took another long sip of coffee. Shirley just sat there and waited for the first sign of a reaction from either of the two men. She also wondered when they would receive any news from the doctors regarding Rolo's condition.

"...It was just so obvious, wasn't it?" Tohdoh muttered sadly, shaking his head. He didn't want to believe it, but ever since the beginning of the case, and after learning of Inspector Lelouch's involvement with the investigation of Kallen Stadtfeld's murder, he always had a nagging suspicion that maybe, just maybe, the inspector himself was actually a conspirator.

"Then...he may be the one responsible for the disappearances of Officer Suzaku and his wife..." Kaname stated in a dry tone of voice.

Tohdoh nodded.

Suddenly, a middle-aged man with short raven-black hair dressed completely in white stepped out from around the corner. Bowing slightly, he said, "Excuse me...you three are here for patient Rolo Haliburton, correct?"

Shirley got up from her seat, and replied in one quick breath, "Yes, we are..."

"Well, despite the blood loss and the damage to his ribs, he's no longer in any danger. A few blood transfusions and stitches, and he'll be just fine..." the doctor explained.

Both Kaname and Tohdoh gave each other relieved glances, while Shirley herself could barely contain her own joy and relief over the news. "May I...see him?" she asked as softly as she could.

The doctor nodded, and Shirley rushed past the doctor without another word and entered the boy's room. Rolo was sitting upright in bed, the lower half of his body completely wrapped in bandages. An IV was hooked into his right arm, pumping blood into his veins. He was staring off out a large window, which poured streams of light into the otherwise bleak little room. Shirley knew he should be resting right now, but she didn't say anything regarding that as she slowly walked up to his bedside.

"H-Hey, Rolo...how are you feeling?" Shirley asked gently, unable to hide the smile of relief on her face.

Rolo didn't turn his eyes away from the window. "I'm fine...luckily, most of the pain is gone due to the numbness..."

Seeing Rolo like this, in the hospital bed, made Shirley almost feel sick to her stomach.

"I'm...I'm so sorry..." Shirley whimpered, tears suddenly pouring down her face, "You're just a child...you should be living a normal life, not being used as a living weapon...Rolo, I don't want to see you suffer again like this...you risked your life to save me...thank you...thank you so much...I owe so much to you..."

"..."

"Rolo...if there's anything I can do for you, anything...I'll do whatever I can. I just want you to be happy now...I don't want to see you in such danger ever again..."

Rolo finally brought his gaze upon Shirley. For some reason, he had a small grin spread out on his lips.

"Shirley..."

"Y-Yes, Rolo...?"

"How old are you?"

Shirley sniffled a bit. "23. Why...?"

"That's good, then. Only a 7-year age difference..."

"...W-What're you talking about, Rolo?"

For the first time in his life, Rolo found himself blushing. "Do you think, after everything is over...we could, uh...go on a date together?"

Shirley's entire face turned bright red, and she began to sweat nervously. "Uh...umm...a...a date? R-Really? Why...why would you want to go on a date...with me?"

Rolo reached out, and placed his hands on Shirley's cheeks. "Because...I...I love you, Shirley...you're the first person to actually treat me like another human being, and...I just love everything about you..."

"R-Rolo...I-"

Then, with a sudden burst of renewed strength, Rolo pulled Shirley close and kissed her passionately on the lips. Shirley's eyes grew wide, but she didn't even try to break away. In fact, she was actually getting into it. For a 16-year-old kid, he wasn't too bad at kissing.

Tohdoh took a single glance into the room, and then walked back to his seat beside Kaname.

"Is Shirley gonna be okay or what?" Kaname asked, finishing off the last of his coffee.

Tohdoh couldn't help but smirk. "I think...she'll be just fine..."

"Huh...I should give Viletta a call, too...make sure she's alright and everything..."

"Yeah...you do that..."

---

---

---

---

---

_In an undisclosed location..._

As he was dressing himself in his bedroom, Zero turned to Lelouch and asked quietly, "...Is everything prepared for the day of the great massacre at city hall?"

Lelouch nodded. "Yes. It was quite lucky on our part to have found a replacement for Rivalz so quickly...he seems to show alot of potential, that man...he's quite skilled in operating various firearms..."

"What was his name again?"

"...Luciano Bradley, I believe..." Lelouch replied.

Zero let out a grunt in response, and tossed a shirt over his head. "We're close...we're so very close to reaching the sacred turning point of mankind..."

Lelouch smirked. "And then...?"

"...And then, we shall rule this pitiful world, as we see fit..." Zero concluded.

Standing up from his bedside, Zero stepped over to a coat-hanger, where his helmet dangled on one of the hooks. Placing his hand over the cold, metallic surface of the helmet, Zero closed his eyes and took in a deep breath.

"Soon...very soon..."


	14. Chapter 14

Disclaimer: I do not own Code Geass.

* * *

_Three days later, and now the ceremony being held in Officer Jeremiah's honor was about to take place in city hall..._

Kaname Ohgi glanced at his wife, who was sitting quietly in the car seat beside him.

"...You don't have to come in if you don't want to. I mean, it'll be boring-" Kaname spoke up, trying to convince Viletta to change her mind.

"No! I'm attending this ceremony, and that's final!" Viletta snapped, and Kaname knew there was no more use in trying to talk her out of it. "Why are you so insistent on keeping me from coming here?! Do you not want me around?!"

"It's not that! Of course it isn't! It's just..."

"It's just WHAT?!" Kaname knew that Viletta's mood swings were mainly due to her pregnancy, but he still wanted to be cautious about what he said around her. However, that is not the reason why he would rather take her back home.

"It's just," Kaname continued after a pause, "I have a bad feeling about today...a really bad feeling..."

"You always say that about everything," Viletta remarked with a sigh.

Kaname nodded. "I know, but...this time, I really do think something bad will happen..."

Viletta didn't respond, and she turned her attention out the window. She saw a large group of people, all of them dressed in black, walking through the grand doors that lead into city hall. They all had such sad looks on their faces; it made Viletta feel a bit uncomfortable. She looked up towards the roof of the building, and for a second, she thought she caught a glimpse of a figure quickly vanishing from sight.

'...What the hell was that?' she wondered, but she thought no more of it as Kaname finally found a parking spot.

As he unhooked his seat belt, Kaname said, "When we get inside, I'm going to meet up with Shirley and Inspector Tohdoh at their table, to talk more about the case. I want to find out if anything's been learned from the autopsy performed on Rivalz Cardemonde. You won't mind, will you?"

Viletta shook her head. "You just do what you need to do..."

"Thanks, honey," Kaname gave her a quick kiss on the lips, and opened the car door. As the two of them climbed out, Viletta glanced at the roof again; there was nothing there, except for a few chirping birds. One of them ruffled its feathers slightly before flying off.

'I was probably just seeing things...' Viletta thought to herself.

Kaname noticed Viletta seemed a bit distracted, so he spoke up, "Uh, honey...are you okay?"

Viletta remained frozen for a moment, her eyes still glued to the roof, and then she brought her gaze down back to Kaname. "Oh, yes," she replied, "I'm...I'm fine..."

Wrapping her arm tightly around Kaname's, Viletta flashed a soft, almost forced smile towards her husband before they began to make their way into the building.

The shadowy figure appeared upon the roof once more, but this time, Viletta did not catch sight of it.

Kaname began to feel uneasy again. A light breeze blew past.

--

--

--

Sitting in a rather laid-back position on the edge of the roof of the grand city hall building, was a single man. He had a leathery brown bag sitting upright on his left knee. Shoving a dirt-caked hand into the bag, he took out a small chunk of what looked like raw meat. The man then sneered to himself.

'Hmm...this Suzaku guy's flesh ain't half bad...luckily, no one else is willing to eat another human but me...leaves more food for me, then...' he thought to himself before stuffing the piece of meat greedily into his mouth. Lying beside him were three large uzi submachine guns, two of them drenched in a red liquid.

He glanced at his watch. It was almost time to begin the massacre. He ran his hands through his light-orange hair, and let out a refreshed sigh. He looked up at the bright blue sky overhead, a smile gracing his lips.

'...Soon...very soon...'

A few feet from his position, two fresh corpses laid spread out under the sun. They were the bodies of Schneizel and Cornelia, two other of Zero's followers. Their faces and chests were riddled with bullet holes, and a large black crow let out a high-pitched caw as it began to feast on the blood-stained flesh.

A small walkie-talkie was left unattended, poking out of Schneizel's left breast pocket...

* * *

_At an undisclosed location..._

Lelouch lowered the walkie-talkie back down to his side. "Schneizel is not responding, and neither is Cornelia...do you think they may have been discovered?"

Zero shook his head. He was now dressed in his full attire, his face hidden beneath a mask and a long black cape draped over his shoulders. a small gray tabby cat sat on the floor beside him, gently nuzzling her head against his knee, begging for food.

"I believe that Luciano Bradley may been responsible for this..." Zero replied calmly and casually. He looked up at the ceiling overhead. It was riddled with holes, allowing only slight rays of sunlight to flow in and illuminate the otherwise darkened building. The cat had a strange, glazed look in its eyes, as if they were filled with haze.

"What?! That can't be right!" Lelouch exclaimed incredulously, "But...but he is our ally! Isn't he?"

"Luciano Bradley is more dangerous and cunning than even myself," Zero explained in a blunt tone, "He is a self-proclaimed 'homicidal genius'...and a cannibal. He does as he pleases, without any petty morals binding him; not even my Geass had been able to take control of that wild, unpredictable mind of his. We should be glad we were actually able to track him down and enlist his help, even if he declared loyalty to me only so that he could 'raise his kill count'. He is the harbringer of the massacre. He is the one who will fulfill that section of my prophecy. He is allowed to do whatever he wishes, as long as he does not turn on our ideals. If he murdered Schneizel and Cornelia in cold blood, then so be it. Their usefulness was coming to an end, in any case..."

Lelouch lowered his head slightly, and his expression became unreadable. "...I understand, my lord..."

The cat let out a quiet purr, and began to crawl up Zero's leg, only to be slapped rather powerfully across the face, causing it to cry out in pain. It hissed loudly at Zero before dashing away.

"...By the way, where is Li Xingke at this hour?" Zero questioned Lelouch, who immediately stiffened his posture. Zero did not seem even remotely distracted by what had just transpired with the cat.

"He is in the lower basement, my lord," Lelouch responded, "He is training intensely for the next stage in your prophecy, which you had just written as of this morning..."

Zero nodded. "Ah, yes...a blinding flash, the blades of two warriors will connect, bringing about a spray of blood, one on the side of justice, and the other serving the king of hell. Indeed...that will happen sooner than later..."

"Do you...really believe so, my lord?"

Zero was silent for a moment. "...Yes, I do..."

Lelouch bowed, and turned to began to depart, when another question formed in his mind. It had been bothering ever since he returned to Lord Zero's side, and he couldn't stop thinking of it. Slowly, he turned to face Zero again.

"My lord, please forgive me for asking, but...where has C.C. gone?"

From behind the tinted glass of his mask, Zero smirked.

"That, my dear Lelouch, is not something you need to know..."

Lelouch grimaced, but he accepted his lord's response, and he walked off into the darkness of the shadows...


	15. Chapter 15

Disclaimer: I do not own Code Geass.

A/N: God, I've been listening to Rammstein too much lately...

EXTRA LONG CHAPTER!!! And a certain character makes a reappearance after a long while at the end!

* * *

"So...you and that Rolo kid hooked up, huh? Never would have expected that to happen..." Inspector Tohdoh remarked with a smirk as he took a sip of wine.

Shirley's cheeks burned brightly. "We...we didn't hook up! Not at all! He just...asked me out on a date...and I...and I accepted...because I want to repay him for saving me!! That's all, okay?!"

"Yeah, you may say that, but...why were you two sucking face, then?"

Shirley clasped her hands over her mouth, and her entire face became as red as tomato. "Y...You saw that...?"

Inspector Tohdoh nodded, and replied, "I had always thought you were the kind of woman who was into older men...guess I was wrong, huh? I still can't believe I lost out to a KID, though..."

Shirley moved her hands from over her mouth to on her hips, and she snapped, "At least he's mature, unlike a certain full-grown adult whose already in his mid-40s and a top-ranked detective!!"

Tohdoh chuckled, and took another sip of his drink. "Ooh, your words...they wound me, madam..." he joked.

Shirley was about to respond, when she caught sight of Kaname running over to the two of them, waving cheerily.

"Ah, glad you made it, Kaname!" Inspector Tohdoh exclaimed once the officer had reached them, and he vigorously shook Kaname's hand, "Then again, considering your friendship with Officer Jeremiah, I suppose it was to be expected that you'd come..."

Instead of some friendly conversation, however, Kaname wished to get right down to business. "...Did we find out anything about Zero or what he's attempting to do after the autopsy performed on Rivalz Cardemonde's corpse?"

Tohdoh finished off the rest of his wine in a single gulp. "To tell the truth, we're really nowhere closer to solving this case than when we started. We were unable to trace the walkie-talkie's signal back to its original source, and we found nothing abnormal and suspicious within his body, or his bloodstream or anything. It seems like we're stuck in another dead end..."

Kaname cursed under his breath. He was afraid of this. "Dammit...what can we do now? If anything, the best we could hope for is for the enemy to bring the information TO US, which definitely won't happen..."

Tohdoh grunted in agreement. Both of the men were very depressed over the fact that their investigation was getting nowhere whatsoever.

"Umm..." Wanting to try and change the subject, Shirley asked, "Hey, Kaname, didn't you bring your wife with you here?"

Raising his head, Kaname nodded, and replied, "Yeah, I did. I've been having this bad feeling since I woke up this morning, and I didn't really want her to come, but she insisted..."

"She's pregnant, right? I'd really love to see the baby when it's born..." Shirley said quietly with a soft smile.

Kaname returned the smile with one of his own. "...Sure...that'd be no problem at all..."

Tohdoh glanced at the stage at the end of the large dining hall. A podium was placed near the edge of the stage, and a tall long-haired man, his face worn with tire and age, was standing behind it. His left eye was held shut by several stitches. His name was Bismark Waldstein, and he was the chief of the entire police force of the city.

"So, that one-eyed bastard actually decided to come down here to pay his respects, huh?" Tohdoh sneered.

Tapping several times on the microphone, Bismark cleared his throat so loudly that it actually brought about silence within the room, and all eyes fell upon him. Placing his hands firmly on the edges of the podium, Bismark coughed slightly, and began to speak.

"...We are all here today to honor a brave man, a loyal comrade and a beloved friend. Jeremiah Gottwald was one of our finest officers-"

"Shut the fuck up. Who gives a shit about some dumbass who went and got himself killed?" barked a unfamiliar voice, and a gunshot echoed throughout the room.

The crowd watched in horrified silence as Bismark staggered forward, and then slumped over onto the podium. A single bullet hole was smoldering in the back of his head. Then, a figure stepped out from behind the curtains. He tossed the pistol he was holding off to the side, and he unsheathed a large uzi submachine gun from a satchel on his back.

An evil grin stretched out on his lips. "...Ah, look at all the people...so many of them, soon to be corpses..."

Tohdoh gasped. "This guy...he's Luciano Bradley! I recognize his face from the 'Most Wanted' posters I see every now and then back at the station! What...what the hell is HE doing here?!!"

A middle-aged woman nearby let out a high-pitched screech, the first of the guests to snap out of the shock, only to be quickly silenced by several bullets tearing into her face.

"Ha ha ha!! Now THAT felt awesome!!" Bradley cackled insanely, "Who else wants to be pumped full of lead?!"

No one said a word.

As he leaped off the stage, while still in mid-air, Bradley pulled the trigger once again, and three people, two elderly men and a young woman, were immediately killed. That was when people finally returned to reality.

"AAAAAAAHHHH!!!"

"OH MY GOD!!! WHAT THE HELL IS GOING ON?!!!"

"HE'S GOING TO KILL US ALL!!!"

They ran for the doors, in hopes of escaping, only to find themselves locked in. Tohdoh, Shirley and Kaname still stood in place, their hands in their pockets, lightly wrapped over their pistols. Kaname took a quick glance around the room to see if he could locate Viletta, but he saw no sign of her.

Bradley smirked as he watched the frantic crowd pound on the doors, kicking away a recently fallen corpse as he did so.

"Trying to escape? Sorry...but I locked all the doors. I'm sure you're all wondering how I did that, considering all the other people and police officers outside, right? Well, I took care of them, too..." Bradley smiled brightly, which made him appear all the more psychotic.

"Y...You m-monster!!" cried one rather brave, or possibly incredibly stupid, old man, "W-Why are you doing this?!! Let us go!! Please!!! We...we all have families...don't you understand what you're doing is madness?! You sick bastard?!!"

Bradley's smile did not falter. "...Hey, buddy, I have a family too, you know. Oh wait, I don't...because I killed them all. And now...to put you in your place..."

The old man screamed out in pain as several bullets were blown into his crotch, and he fell to the floor with a loud thump. The crowd then scattered, dashing everywhere around the spacious room to look for a way to escape, while Bradley just laughed and laughed. He waved his gun around as he fired, as more and more people were sent crashing down, their lives being treated as nothing but playthings.

However, his laughter came to an abrupt end when a bullet clipped his shoulder. He glanced down at his shoulder, and saw it was beginning to bleed. Turning around rather slowly, he saw that Kaname, Shirley and Tohdoh were all standing before him, their pistols drawn and aimed directly at his chest.

Bradley grinned. "Ahh...you guys must be the 'troublemakers' that Zero speaks of... Kyoshiro Tohdoh, Shirley Fenette, and Kaname Ohgi. Pleasure to meet you all..."

"So," Shirley spoke up, her voice calm yet raging at the same time, "You also work for that bastard Zero..."

Bradley's gaze fell upon Shirley's chest, and he licked his lips. "Heh heh...Zero never told me that I couldn't rape any of my victims..."

Shirley stiffened with fear from the sudden threat, but those words just intensified Tohdoh's fury.

"Shut yer fuckin' trap!!!" Tohdoh snapped, and he fired his pistol, except Bradley swiftly side-stepped to the right just in time, dodging the bullet.

Tohdoh cursed loudly, and clenched his teeth. 'I have to keep my cool...if I lose control, I could end up causing even more causalities by making amateur mistakes...but...it's just so hard to stay calm with this goddamn son of a bitch sneering at me like this!!!'

Kaname bit his lower lip. 'Argh...where is Viletta? Is she okay? Is she hurt? Is she...even still alive?' His desperate desire to know that his wife is okay was distracting Kaname from the murderous threat right in front of him.

"Come on," Bradley taunted, "Shoot at me again. What's the problem? Afraid of taking a human life? There's no reason to even bother capturing me alive; I'd just be sentenced to death anyway. C'mon...shoot me..."

For some reason, although he felt like he was fully willing to kill this heartless monster, Tohdoh just couldn't bring himself to pull the trigger. 'What...the hell...is wrong with me? Why...can't I just shoot him? He has to die...but I just can't kill him!! I can wound him, but...he deserves death here and now for everything he's done!!!'

Bradley's smile fell, and he now had an almost bored expression on his face. "So...you can't even pull the trigger and kill me? You guys are boring..."

He raised the uzi, and fired off a wave of bullets. Tohdoh and Shirley quickly leaped to the side, rolling behind upturned tables for protection, while Kaname jumped to the right barely before the bullets whizzed past, burying themselves into the back of another unfortunate victim nearby.

Kaname wiped the sweat from his forehead, and breathed heavily. 'Oh god...that was close...'

Pressing his back against the table, Tohdoh slowly peeked out, only to quickly pull his head back as several bullets zoomed by. The air around them now carried the scent of blood.

Slowly walking along, as if he was on a simple stroll, Bradley spoke loudly, "You know, I could just kill all of you now, but that would take all the fun out of this, don't you think? If you can't even bring yourself to kill, then you're basically just wasting your time until I finally capture you, and tear you apart, and feast on your guts. I've cut off all telephone lines, and I've set up a jamming device on the roof of the building, so that no one can contact the outside world with their cellphones, pagers of other messaging devices. In other words...you are all the white-furred mice that have been thrust into my cage for me to feast upon..."

'This man...is a monster...' Shirley thought, tears forming in her eyes.

Kaname glanced over the white table he had taken cover behind, and finally, he saw her...Viletta. She was lying up against one of the walls, clutching her arms around herself, and her expression was hidden behind the strands of hair that fell over her face.

Kaname let out a sigh of relief. 'Viletta...please, just hold on...I'll get us both out of here, alive...I promise you...'

Suddenly, before Kaname could even move, he heard the sound of something clicking. He slowly turned his head...and saw Bradley holding the barrel of the uzi right up to his face.

"...Kaname Ohgi...you let yourself get distracted, you fool..." Bradley snarled.

Kaname's eyes grew wide, and a single drop of sweat rolled down the side of his face. 'No...oh god, no...please...I...I can't die...no...'

He fumbled to aim his gun, but Bradley kicked it out of Kaname's hands, and it landed far off behind him. Kaname quickly looked off in the direction where he had seen Viletta, but in his current sitting position, he could not even catch the smallest glimpse of her.

Bradley pressed the uzi's barrel against Kaname's forehead. "...Useless..."

Kaname closed his eyes. 'He's right...I am useless...'

He thought of Viletta one more time, and prayed she would live on, and not fall at the hands of his maniac...

That was when the front doors, which had been locked only moments ago, swung wide open, and a familiar voice exclaimed, "KANAME!! TOHDOH!! SHIRLEY!!! ARE YOU GUYS STILL ALIVE IN HERE?!!"

Two figures stood in the doorway. One of them was a woman in a nurse's uniform, with long emerald-green hair and bright-yellow eyes. And beside her...

...was Rolo, wielding an M82A2 rifle. He was still wearing his hospital robes, and he had an IV bag strapped tightly to his shoulder, still pumping IV into his veins.

Shirley gasped. "R-ROLO?!!"

Tohdoh gasped as well, but this was due to the woman who had brought Rolo here. "That's...that's C.C..."

C.C. had a sad look in her eyes, and she was staring straight at Bradley, as if she was pitying his very existence.

Bradley just stared right back, completely lost in the confusion.

"...Sorry...Bradley...but this is Lord Zero's will..." C.C. whispered.

Bradley began to speak, but all words left him as a single blast from the M82A2 rifle tore through his chest, ripping a spherical hole into his body.

"S...Shit..." Sent flying across the room, Bradley crashed into one of the chairs, shattering it to pieces upon impact. He just laid there, in a twisted position, blood pouring out of his wound like a waterfall.

Tohdoh, Shirley and Kaname were all completely speechless.


	16. Chapter 16

Disclaimer: I do not own Code Geass.

A/N: Please review, because it keeps me motivated to continue working! The reason I had put this fic on hiatus before was because the last chapter didn't get alot of reviews, and I figured it was because I wrote it badly so I felt kind of disheartened.

Anyway, this chapter skips ahead from where the story last left off, so as to leave some ambiguity on what had exactly happened after Luciano's defeat...and about what happens to C.C. as well.

* * *

'We're finally here...'

As soon as he stepped out of his car, Kaname's sense of smell was momentarily overwhelmed by the scent of the salty sea air of the local docks. There was a slight breeze, and his curly hair shook gently in the wind. A group of seagulls circled overhead, cawing out for at least the smallest morsel of food. The other car doors swung open, and Tohdoh, Shirley and Rolo climbed out, all of them with grave expressions on their faces. The sky was tinted orange now, as the sun had begun to vanish behind the waves, night quickly approaching. No one said a word.

"So...this is it, huh? Zero's hidden 'base'..." Tohdoh finally muttered aloud, glaring hatefully up at the large warehouse that stood before them. He held a pistol in his right hand, and a scabbard in his left. Black circles were evident underneath his eyes, and he looked almost like he had aged about ten years in the past three hours. His body shivered slightly with every breath.

Kaname gave a small nod in response. "If everything that C.C. had told Rolo was true, then this is the place..."

Rolo grimaced, recalling what had taken place earlier that day concerning him and the mysterious green-haired vixen. He still couldn't believe that woman had actually taken him out of the hospital, and even provided him with firearms, as well! Rolo then clutched the large M82A2 rifle tightly to his chest, and let out a few heavy breaths, to keep his emotions under control. He wasn't trying to calm himself out of fear, but out of rage; if anything, he wanted to rush in there at that very moment, and kill Zero without hesitation. An inhumane monster like Zero did not deserve even a fair trial...only death awaited him. Just thinking of all of those poor victims who had suffered at this insane bastard's hands made Rolo's blood boil. He had even attempted to have him and Shirley killed, too!

However, Rolo remembered that C.C. had told him not to let his emotions gain control when confronting Zero or his remaining two followers, or the entire city would most surely meet its end. He wasn't sure why, but Rolo felt like he was able to put his complete trust in the woman's words, despite her connection to this case. Rolo personally wished that C.C. had chosen to go with them, to aid them in this final confrontation, but she had vanished during the commotion after the hostages were saved, because she knew that staying around any longer would result in her capture. After all, she WAS a death-row criminal, and a prime suspect in the murders of Officer Jeremiah and Gino Weinberg.

"Rolo..."

Rolo snapped back to reality, and looked up at Shirley, who seemed very concerning about his well-being. "Are you...are you sure you want to do this? I mean...you really should still be in the hospital...it'd be bad if you got hurt again..."

Rolo shook his head, replying, "No. I have to be here...I NEED TO BE HERE, Shirley. I'll be okay...so don't worry...just watch out for yourself, alright?"

"...O-Okay..." Shirley still didn't feel too convinced by Rolo's words, but she wasn't going to pursue the argument any further, because she was going to respect her boyfriend's decision with all of her heart. Luckily for her, Rolo was more than skilled to fend for himself, what with his top-notch sniping skills and all. Shirley gripped the handle of her gun tightly; she didn't plan on dying here either.

Kaname, meanwhile, was deep in thought on pondering Zero's true motives. 'He had requested the 4 of us to arrive here at the location of his headquarters...and only us. If we had brought an entire squadron behind us...what would happen? Just what does he want from our city, from our police force? Why is he doing all of this? We can't risk anything against an enemy with no morals, who is willing to do whatever it takes to get his way...so if anyone is going to stop him, it's us...no one else...'

Kaname thought of all his family and friends, hoping for their safety. He thought of his wife, Villetta, and prayed to God that she was alright. He thought of his child, yet to be born, and wished that he will grow up in a peaceful world. The responsibility to bring upon that protection was all on his shoulders now.

Taking in a deep breath, he took a single step forward. The seagulls, which had finally landed nearby, quickly scattered off in an instant. Kaname was afraid to die, and he knew that the others were just the same; none of them wanted to die. However, for the sake of bringing justice and peace for the innocents of the city, they had to throw their lives on the line. Kaname had understood this ever since he first joined the force.

He switched off the safety lock on his gun, knowing there was no point for it now; each shot was now going to be aimed to kill. He glanced at Tohdoh; the older man had his hand clasped tightly onto the handle of his blade. Kaname was going to ask about the sword, but decided against it. The more weaponry they had the better, after all.

Kaname coughed. "...Ready?"

A moment of silence. "...Yeah...let's do this..." A seagull squawked loudly.

"Alright, then..." Kaname clenched his fists.

Then...they entered the warehouse, not looking away even once...for it was too late to go back now...

...and waiting for them was a tall man of Chinese descent with long inky-black hair, a sword at his waist...


End file.
